


I Am Thou, Thou Art I

by ericsonclan



Series: I Am Thou, Thou Art I [1]
Category: The Walking Dead (Telltale Video Game)
Genre: Alternate Universe- Persona, Best Friends, Blood, Blood and Injury, Bracelets, Cancer, Christmas Party, College, Confessions, Death, Dreams and Nightmares, F/F, F/M, Fluff, Fluff and Angst, Fluff and Humor, Friends to Lovers, Friendship, Gen, Gift Giving, Grief/Mourning, Implied/Referenced Drug Addiction, Implied/Referenced Drug Use, Implied/Referenced Self-Harm, Implied/Referenced Sexual Assault, Implied/Referenced Suicide, Karaoke, Leadership, Love Confessions, M/M, Mentions of Cancer, Mutual Pining, Near Death Experiences, Protective Siblings, Protectiveness, Rollerblades & Rollerskates, Secret Identity, Secrets, Snow, Superheroes, Team Bonding, Team as Family
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-08-10
Updated: 2021-02-27
Packaged: 2021-03-06 01:02:22
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 43
Words: 149,091
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25814734
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ericsonclan/pseuds/ericsonclan
Summary: Clementine is nervous for college but within the first few days she realizes there will be a lot more to worry about then just the classes.
Relationships: Aasim/Ruby (Walking Dead: Done Running), Brody & Clementine (Walking Dead: Done Running), Brody & Louis (Walking Dead: Done Running), Brody & Ruby (Walking Dead: Done Running), Brody & Violet (Walking Dead: Done Running), Brody/Mitch (Walking Dead: Done Running), Carley/Lee Everett, Clementine & Lee Everett, Clementine & Violet (Walking Dead: Done Running), Clementine/Louis (Walking Dead: Done Running), Gabriel García & Mariana García, Jesse/James (Walking Dead: Suffer The Children), Louis & Marlon (Walking Dead: Done Running), Louis & Violet (Walking Dead: Done Running), Marlon/Sophie (Walking Dead: Done Running), Matthew/Walter (Walking Dead: A House Divided), Minerva & Sophie (Walking Dead: Done Running), Mitch & Willy (Walking Dead: Done Running), Prisha & Clementine (Walking Dead: Done Running), Prisha/Violet (Walking Dead: Done Running), Renata/Minerva (Walking Dead: Done Running)
Series: I Am Thou, Thou Art I [1]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1872985
Comments: 6
Kudos: 24





	1. A Hero is Called

**Author's Note:**

> (by Linnea)
> 
> Inspired by the Persona video games series with original world building by Laura and Linnea

Clementine sat down on the floor, her back against the wall, looking down at the green backpack in her lap. She had already double checked to make sure she had everything for her first day at Ericson University, but it couldn’t hurt to check again. She opened up her bag looking thoroughly at the contents. Her text books were all there taking up the majority of the space, leaving just enough room for her notebook and purple pencil case. She looked at the side of her backpack which held her water bottle. Lastly she checked her front pouch which held her wallet, flipping it open to check to see if her school ID was there. After that was confirmed she took a deep breath, zipping up her bag and placing it at the side of her bed before proceeding to get ready to sleep. 

_I’m sure it will go well,_ she reassured herself as she got under her covers, glancing up at the clock which read eleven twenty. She always got nervous before going to a new school and it seemed that college would be no different. She stared up at the ceiling, thoughts swimming through her head before her eyelids began to droop, sleep overtaking her. 

An odd feeling twisted through her stomach; her eyelids fluttering open. Her golden brown eyes looked around, confused by her surroundings. Somehow she had ended up in a courtroom, a sight she wasn’t unfamiliar with. Except she had never seen a blue tinted one before. The light shining through the window danced on the floor before her. The room was empty, the table where the prosecutor would be, the row in which the jury would sit, even the seats behind her. 

_How the hell did I end up here?_

“Ah.” A high voice sounded out in front of her, causing her to look up at the judge’s bench. An old man in a black suit sat there with a large unnerving smile on his face. His nose was abnormally large as his hands rested underneath it, covered in white gloves. Time didn’t seem to be kind to him; the top of his head was bald, the gray hair only growing part ways down. Next to him was a gavel frozen in the air, hovering over the stand. Behind him displayed a statue of Lady Justice, her arms appearing on both sides of him. Her right arm reached out holding a scale that stayed in perfect balance while her left hand held a sword by her side.

He slowly displayed his hand, his head moving slightly to the side. “Welcome to the Velvet Room.”

Clementine looked up at him, even more confused by the situation. Wasn’t this a courtroom?

“My name is Igor.” His grin stayed, causing Clementine to shift awkwardly in her seat. “I’m delighted to make your acquaintance.” The man stared into Clementine's eyes. “It’s been a while since I’ve had a guest like you.”

_This can’t be real. I must be dreaming._

“This place exists between dream and reality, mind and matter.” 

He didn’t seem to let her fully process what was happening as he continued. 

“Only those who have signed a contract can enter here.”

“Contract?” Clementine’s voice cracked, trying to recall if she had signed anything that could have put her in this situation. 

“In the upcoming days, you may find yourself entering a contract of sorts which will allow you to come back here.” His voice sounded mysterious as if he had countless secrets hidden away. 

Her head was spinning. 

“Oh. Forgive me, I forgot to introduce my attendee, James.” He motioned over towards Clementine’s side. Her eyes followed his hand. The chair scratched against the floor as she flinched. How did she not notice that someone had been beside her this whole time? The boy in a blue suit who stood there seemed to be around her age. His eyes studied her face. 

“Hello.” He whispered, giving a quick bow. 

Igor gave a small chuckle. “The path you tread will be one full of turmoil and endless struggle, but in doing so you will secure your future.” 

“My path?” None of this was making any sense. 

A sudden ringing caused Clementine’s attention to turn away from her thoughts. 

“We shall attend to the details another time.” Igor’s hands were placed under his chin. “Until then…” 

His voice faded out, the room quickly disappearing as Clementine’s sight filled with the color blue. Letting out a gasp, she shot up from herbed. Her head rested against her knees as she tried to process what that was all about. 

“Clementine. Are you up yet?” A voice called out from downstairs. 

“Yeah. Just give me a minute and I’ll be right down!” She responded before shuffling around the room, preparing for her first day. As she got the bottom of the staircase, the smell of pancakes hit her, causing her to smile. Lee stood by a griddle flipping pancakes. He looked up as he heard Clementine make her way to the table. 

“How did you sleep?” He asked with a warm smile. 

“Not so great. I think I’m just nervous.” She gave a half-hearted smile, grabbing a few pancakes before sitting down. Her brother AJ sat across from her scarfing down what was surely not his first plate of pancakes. 

“It’s okay to feel nervous.” Lee replied, flipping another pancake. “I’m sure you’ll have a great first day though.” 

“Yeah, I guess.” Clementine responded, placing some butter and syrup on her pancakes. She slowly ate them, trying to calm down the nerves inside her enough to enjoy the special breakfast. Her eyes looked over at the clock, widening when she realized what time it was. “Oh shit! I gotta go.” She swung her backpack on her back, double checking things once again. 

“Swear.” AJ said, his mouth full of pancakes. 

Clementine let out a groan, placing a dollar bill in the jar. “Sorry. Bye Lee, bye AJ, I’ll see you later.”

“Bye!” AJ waved, pancake chunks falling out of his mouth. 

“Have a good day.” Lee said, waving the spatula. 

Clementine gave a quick wave and smiled before turning to leave. Luckily she didn’t live far from campus so it only took her around ten minutes to arrive at the front entrance. The word _Ericson_ shone in gold letters on the front gate. She slid her backpack off, digging through it to find the campus map. _I have class in building E. Which should be over there._ She looked over at the left side of campus. She still had time; she should be able to make it. It was cutting it pretty close but she was successful, sitting in the chair right when the bell rang signaling the start of class. 

“Hello, class. Welcome to Philosophy 101.” The professor's voice seemed warm and friendly. He was a bit of a plumper man in a red turtleneck and his hair was nearly all gone.“My name is Professor Bailey, but you can call me Walter.” He leaned against his desk that stood by the whiteboard. “Now I know all of you might not be that excited to be stuck in a philosophy class, but what I hope to show you all this year is how fascinating and interesting it can be…” 

His words start to fade from there, Clementine’s body feeling exhausted after a bad night's sleep. No matter how hard she tried, she couldn’t get herself to concentrate on the lecture. Her mind was too consumed by the place in her dreams. The Velvet Room and Igor. _He said it was between dream and reality. So was it real?_

Her attention shifted from those thoughts as she had a feeling that someone was staring at her. She looked around the room, pausing on a boy with dreadlocks. His freckled face was covered with a goofy grin. He gave a quick wave which Clementine returned before he went back to his notes, hoping the professor didn’t catch him not paying attention. Clementine tried to do the same, writing down the few sentences that got through to her until the bell rang. 

“Alright, class. I’ll see you on Wednesday. And be sure to do the assignment.” 

A blonde girl quickly stood up from her seat. Grabbing her beat-up backpack, she made her way to the exit, bumping into Clementine. “Shit. Sorry.” She mumbled. Her striking pale green eyes looked over at Clementine for a second. Her gaze soon returned to the floor as she left the classroom. 

“First days are always boring.”

Clementine looked over to see the dreadlocked boy. He stood proudly beside her, his green shirt complementing his dark skin beautifully. He gave a smile. “I’m Louis.” 

“Clementine.” 

“I saw that philosophy class _completely_ held your attention.” He said sarcastically with a playful smile. 

Clementine let out a sigh. “Yeah. I did a great job taking notes.” She gestured to her notes which consisted of a couple sentences. 

“Nervous about the first day of classes?”

“I guess you could say that.” She responded, packing up her backpack. 

“Well, what class do you have next?” 

“English 1C.” 

“With Professor Smith?” 

Clementine looked at her schedule. “Yep.” 

Louis gave a huge smile. “I happen to have that class next too. Why don’t we walk over together?” 

“I’d appreciate that.” 

“Then onward to Building C!” Louis dramatically pointed before leading the way. Clementine quickly caught up, walking beside him. 

“So what’s your major?” Louis asked, trying to start up some small talk. 

“Undecided. I’m hoping I’ll find the answer to that question soon.” 

Louis nodded.

“What about you?”

“Major in business. Minor in music.” Clementine noticed his smile appear towards the end of that sentence. She wondered whether to ask about it or not but figured it wasn’t her place. 

“What sort of music do you like?” She asked, the two of them pausing to let some other students walk by. 

“I like a lot of them, but if I had to choose my favorite it has to be classical. Mozart, Bach, Beethoven the list can go on and on. All of them geniuses at their craft.” His eyes shone as he spoke about it. Clementine gave a small smile. It was nice to hear someone talk about what they were passionate about. Before she knew it they had made it to the classroom. As it turned out, she and Louis had a pretty similar schedule which was nice. It made the week easier with each day bringing up more and more facts about the other. 

\----

“It’s finally Friday!” Louis exclaimed, stretching his arms up in the air. A yawn quickly escaped from his mouth. 

“Yeah. Almost done with the first week of classes.” Clementine replied, shifting the backpack on her back. 

Louis pulled out his phone. “Shit, it’s already that time?” 

“We better get to class.” 

“Oh hey, it’s Violet!” Louis waved at the blonde girl who paused at his sentence. 

“Who are you?” She asked with slight annoyance in her voice.

“It’s Louis. We’re in philosophy class together. We’ve talked twice.”

“Oh, right.” She looked over at Clementine. 

“Oh, that’s Clementine.” Louis commented. 

“I remember you.” She crossed her arms. “If you guys don’t hurry, you’re going to be late.” She paused, looking at the ground before looking back at them. “I know a shortcut. I can show you if you want.”

“That would be great.” Clementine smiled, causing Violet to look away. She led the two through the campus.

“How do you know the campus so well?” Louis asked with curiosity.” 

“I’m a sophomore.” Violet replied before turning into the alley. The two were right behind her. 

“Then why-“ Louis’ sentence was cut off as he bumped into Violet who stood frozen. He let out a pained hiss. 

“Louis, you okay?” Clem asked, putting a hand on his shoulder. 

“Yeah. I’m fine. My nose on the other hand, not so much.” 

“What the fuck is that?” Violet’s voice drew the others' attention back to the alley. Both of them paused when they saw the sight that caused Violet to freeze. In the middle of the alley was a giant, jagged rift in the air. A ghastly blue light swirled, shining through it. Whispers that sounded hauntingly sad came from its depths. 

The three stood unsure what to do as the unnerving whispers continued.


	2. A Wildcard in the Making

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Clementine, Violet and Louis enter the rift and find a world like nothing they've ever seen before.

The three stood, none were sure what to do. Let alone if it was safe to be nearby it. Clem was the first to take a step forward which was a mistake. The rift made an eerie sound as it grew larger and larger before bursting open with a bright blue light swallowing the trio. When their eyes had readjusted they realized they were in a completely different place. What was once the alleyway had turned into a living room it’s unsettling grayish blue covered the area. Filling them with a feeling of dread as the whispers they had heard before grew louder. 

“What the hell just happened?” Violet asked, studying the room carefully, her guard never dropping. 

“I’m not sure.” Clementine replied. 

Suddenly an ear piercing sound rang out from behind them. The rift that had been their forceful entrance was now closing up. The three sprinted towards it but by the time they had reached it it had vanished with a trace. As if it was never there in the first place. 

“What the shit!” Louis yelled reaching into his pocket to grab his phone. Unlocking it he flipped through his contacts before landing on Marlon. “What the shit?!?” His thumb desperately pressed the contact but nothing happened. “My phone isn’t working!” 

Clementine and Violet quickly grabbed their phones. Violet tried to call Minnie and Sophie but her phone wouldn’t register it.

“Shit! Mine isn’t working either. Fuck!” She turned around letting out a frustrated groan. 

_Please work._ Clementine’s fingers shook barely reaching Lee’s contact info. “It’s not working for me either.” Her voice was shaky, her eyes searching the room. _There has to be an exit._

The TV in the room continued to blare, the somber whispering exiting from its static screen. Clem’ eyes continued to look around, it looked like the inside of someone’s house. A nearby chair and table were tossed over as if a struggle had happened recently. 

“We need to get out of here. This place is creeping me out.” Violet glared at the family portraits on the wall. The person in the middle seemed to be slowly fading out. 

“Well, we could try one of the corridors?” Louis offered, stuffing his phone back in his pocket.  
“That would be our best best.” Clementine added, looking at the two corridors that split off from the room. But how were they going to pick one? Suddenly a weird groan emitted from the couch that was facing the TV. Two silhouettes appeared lifting up their bodies in an unnatural way. 

“Why? Me?” The two said in unison. 

“What the fuck!” Violet whispered. They were the people in the portrait. Their bodies twitched as black goo oozed from their bodies until they had another form.  
“  
What the hell is this place.” Louis stared in disbelief. 

“Guys we need to-” 

One of the creatures lunges forward cutting off Clementine’s sentence. It’s claws quickly descending on her. She wouldn’t be able to dodge it in time. Louis sprinted forward tackling Clementine to the side barely getting out unscathed. The monster landed with an unearthly scream twisted it’s face to look at the pair.   
Violet’s fist shot out connecting with its face causing it to fall over with a groan. 

“We gotta fucking move!” She yelled helping the two up before leading the way down the right corridor. The trio ran through the hallway not daring to look back to see if they were followed before freezing. An intersection stood in their way. 

Left or right?

One had to be the way to the exit.

Clementine ran forward running around the right hand corner. Violet and Louis followed suit. 

“Shit.” Clementine screeched to a halt. 

A door stood in front of them painted on the wall. It was a dead end. 

Clementine felt her heart race. How was she going to get out of here with the others and keep them safe? Her heart immediately stopped an intense pain running through it. It was over in an instant. She gasped for air. 

“Clementine!” Louis put a hand on her shoulder. “Are you okay?” 

“Yeah.” Her voice was a bit shaky. “I’m fine.”

Violet and Louis looked at each other clearly not convinced. 

“Let’s just keep moving.” She turned around walking back the way they had come when something out of the corner of her eye caught her attention. _Was there always a corridor there?_

“I think the exit’s down this way.” Clementine called back to the others. 

“How do you know?” Violet asked.

“I just have this feeling. Trust me.”   
T  
he two didn’t respond but followed her all the same. Running down the hallway the trio noticed the walls which reflected that of the alleyway. _We need to get the hell out of here._  
Clementine stopped standing in front of a brown wooden door. Its doorknob was covered in a weird symbol. She had to trust her gut. Grabbing the knob she twisted it, throwing open the door. 

As soon as she entered the room the door slammed shut behind her separating her from Violet and Louis. 

“Shit!” Louis screamed, hitting the door with his fists. He quickly tried the handle which refused to budge. “SHIT!”

“Move!” Violet pushes him aside trying her own hand at opening the door but nothing seemed to help. “Fuck.” She whispered, glaring at the door.

“What are we going to do? Clementine is trapped on the other side!” Louis ran a hand through his dreadlocks, his nerves rising with each minute. 

Clementine tried to open the door but had no luck. It seemed she was stuck in here. 

“I see you finally showed up.” An eerily familiar voice caused her to turn. Her eyes widened in confusion at the sight before her. There standing in what seemed to be an interrogation room was herself. 

“Who are you?” She questioned slowly backing away. 

“That’s a stupid question. I am you.” The being walked forward. “And you are me.” 

“That’s not possible.” 

“Oh?” Her expression seemed to mirror Clementine’s shocked face exactly. “But I know everything about you. How you got that nasty scar on your arm from a dog. How many foster homes you’ve been tossed in. I think you end up at four quite a lot for so little time.”

Clementine’s face fell. How could she possibly know that? 

“Honestly you should really take responsibility for your actions?” The other’s voice was sickenly matches her own. 

“What?” Clementine looked up at the person. She looked at her with a smile, her arms suddenly twitching. 

_Did she just twitch or was that…_

“Oh Clementine. You and I both know that it’s your fault. Every home you got kicked out of, every scar on your body even your parents’ deaths.” It looked at her with an unreadable expression.   
“If only you hadn’t asked to go to the Giant Redwoods.” The person's voice changed. “Mom, Dad please. I really want to see them. They look so cool!” 

Clementine felt her stomach drop. Those were the exact words she said on that day but even more unnerving was that it was in her voice. 

“But you did ask and it cost your parents their lives. All because a nine year old brat wanted to see some stupid trees. It’s a good thing you have that scar on your head to remind yourself of your failures.” 

“No that’s not…” Clementine’s voice faded out. 

“What? Not true?” The being slammed their hand on the table. “Take some responsibility and grow the fuck up! It doesn’t end there.” She walked toward Clementine who felt her body shake slightly. “All those homes that took in a foster kid like you and every single time you got thrown out. Why? Because you deserved it! After all you were the reason why.” 

Clementine felt her head spin.

“I bet you think you’ve finally ended your string of failures now that you have AJ and Lee.” 

Clementine’s eyes shot up meeting the smug face of the speaker. 

“But you and I both know you’ll screw it up. You always do.” 

Clementine felt her heart twist with rage. Biting down on her lip she broke the skin causing a stream of blood to spill out from it. 

“You’re wrong.” She hissed glaring up at the imposter. “I’m not responsible for these things!”

The being shook their head sadly. “Still trying to deny your true self.” 

“Shut up! I may not be responsible for fate’s twisted hand in my life but I will take responsibility in the choices I make! No matter what path I take it will be one carved by my own two hands!” She yelled. 

Suddenly the person let out a pained scream clutching their sides. “No you’re wrong! Why won’t you listen!” A bright light shined in their stomach, their body slowly cracking throughout until they combusted letting out a sharp cry. 

Clementine stared in disbelief, her stomach twisting in at the sight a wave of nausea hitting her. Suddenly a sharp pain entered her heart. It felt as though a red hot blade had been stabbed through it. Letting out pain gasp she fell to her knees clutching her chest with her right hand. Just as she was catching her breath her hand started to sear with a burning sensation. Grasping it with her other hand she cried out looking as a circle formed on her hand. The flames licking against her skin as a sigil slowly appeared in the shape of a flower. Extended her right hand she looked in disbelief. Had she just been branded? Her eyes focus shifted when she noticed a person stand where the imposter once stood. 

Scrambling to her feet, her back hit the wall. The being looked like something out of ancient Egypt. Her slim figure was covered in a gold top that transitioned to blue as it covered her legs. Blue bands covered her ankles, her bare feet standing out as she gave of a golden ethereal glow. Her usekh laid beautifully across her collar bones. The red, blue and gold complimenting her perfectly. In one hand she held the hilt of a sword an ankh tied around her hand draping over her arm. In the other held a bronze scale dangling from a chain attached to her middle and index finger. An ostrich feather spun around in the air on one side of the scale, never stopping as if undecided on the judgement. All of this was unusual in its own right but the thing that drew Clementine’s attention the most was the person’s face. It stared blankly at her, the place in which her eyes should be laid bare. 

She turned her head swiftly looking Clem directly in the eyes. 

“I am Ma’at. It seems you have finally awakened.” Her voice sounded commanding yet gentle. 

Clementine tried to speak but no words would come out. 

_I am thou, thou art I.  
By casting away the falsehoods placed within your heart and opening your eyes to the truth.  
I have come from the depths of your soul  
to help in your pursuit of justice._

Before she could reply the being in front of her faded into an orb of light shooting forward. It hit against her chest absorbing itself into her heart. 

Clementine held her chest in disbelief. Had that really just happened.

A loud crash caused her to look behind her. Louis and Violet laid on the floor both groaning as they stood up. Their eyes widened when they saw Clem. 

“Clementine!” They both yelled. 

“Holy shit.” Louis let out a sigh of relief. “We thought we lost you there. Ramming against the door for twenty minutes really does a number on you.” He gave a warm smile in her direction.

“Sorry. I tried to open the door but it wouldn’t budge.” She apologized, looking at the pair catching their breath. “Wait? Twenty minutes?!?”

She thought it had only been five minutes. Ten at most. 

“Yeah. We were about to give up when the door suddenly opened.” Violet replied looking at her before returning her gaze to the floor. 

“What the hell happened in there?” Louis asked with concern. 

“I’ll tell you later. For now we need to focus on getting out of here.” 

Louis and Violet nodded in agreement and the trio continued down the path they came, turning the corner to the last possible way on this side of this place. When they opened the door they were met with an ambush of those monsters. Louis and Violet stood by Clementine ready to fight even though it seemed near impossible they could survive this. Clementine quickly ran forward taking off the silver fingerless glove on her right hand.

_When did that show up?_

Placing her right hand on her heart. She yelled the words placed on her tongue. 

“Persona!” The sigil glowed bright blue. Ma’at immediately appeared behind Clementine. Her aura sent a chill down the monsters’ back. 

“Ma’at!” Clementine instructed thrust her finger forward. “Let’s take them out!” 

Ma’at nodded before letting out her attack. The ostrich feather on the scale froze in place as a gust of wind cut past Clementine. Hitting a monster square in the face. It let out a cry before disappearing into nothing. Even though she had never worked with her before Clementine and Ma’at soon took out the rest of them dodging attacks gracefully before hitting back with powerful wind magic. Violet and Louis looked on in disbelief unsure how to process what was happening. When the room was cleared Ma’at faded away causing the glove to reappear on Clem’s hand. 

“What?” Louis began his words seeming to escape his mind as he stared at Clementine.

“I’m not sure what it is but it seemed to merge with me or something.” Clementine started looking at the other two. 

“What the fuck is going on?” Violet murmured. 

“We need to keep moving.” Clementine instructed. “I’ll tell you about everything once we escape.” 

The three made their way back to the first room that they entered the two monsters still hovering by the TV. Louis and Violet teamed up distracting one of the monsters while Clementine and her persona dealt with the other. 

“Guys!” Clementine warned the two back stepped away before the monster was hit with another powerful air attack. 

“Holy shit! That power is so cool!” Louis exclaimed with a smile.

“Thanks.” Clementine said, returning the smile.

Their smiles quickly disappeared however when a voice cried out. 

“Please stop! I wanna go home! Please! Mom! Dad!” The voice choked as tears overtook them. It was coming from the door on the north side of the room. 

“We need to help them!” Louis said panic in his voice. He tried to open the door but it would budge.

“How are we supposed to do that you idiot?” Violet asked with her arms crossed. “We need to focus on finding an exit.”

“But that person could be in trouble!”

“Then we get help! The police should handle this, not us.” 

Both looked at Clementine clearly wanting her support on their side. 

“We need to find and exit, but if we can help her along the way then we should.” She figure it was best to take as neutral of a position as she could. 

“Come on we still have the other side to check.”

The group ran down the left corridor until they reached the intersection to which they turned the same direction as before. In the room on the right side was a bathroom filled with monsters. 

“Really? The bathroom?” Louis punched one before ducking for Violet to get in a hit. “Does privacy count for nothing these days?” The trio disposed of them after a few minutes. That left only one place left to check. They made their way over to the other side down the hall which led to a long winding staircase. 

“How far does this thing go?” Violet asked looking over the edge down into a dark pit. 

“There’s only one way to find out!” Louis declares before letting out a copious amount of spit. It took a few seconds before it hit the bottom but it didn’t make a difference whether it took a few seconds or a few minutes. For when the spit hit the floor it didn’t make a sound loud enough for them to hear. All they heard was a faint pitter patter of feet echoing from the dark pit. 

Clementine glanced at the other two. They were exhausted. 

“We should regroup in the living room and take a break.” 

The two looked like they wanted to protest but were clearly too tired to do so. When they arrived back at the room an eerie cry rang out. From the shadows emerged two figures. Two white men who radiated a feeling of unease. 

“Don’t resist. Just go along with it.” One talked in a quiet voice. 

“Unless you want to get hurt?” The other’s face twisted in a wicked smirk. Their body twitched, convulsing until they changed into the other form. 

“Get back!” Clementine yelled to the others, ripping off her glove. “Persona!” A gust of wind quickly shot past her slicing the two monsters in one swift motion. Their bodies disappeared in an instant. Letting out a shaky breath she looked at Louis and Violet. She wasn’t sure how much more she could take. A loud creaking noise drew their attention as the northernmost door opened. 

The three looked at each other. They had run out of options; this was the only way they could go. 

The room they entered seemed to be a bedroom. A blue bed laid on the right side of the room while a desk covered with notes stood on the left side. A young girl looking around college age huddled in the middle. Her eyes looked glassy, tears covering her face. In her arms she held what looked like to be a picture frame. 

Clementine slowly approached her. 

“Hey there. My name’s Clementine.” Her voice was calm and reassuring. “What’s your name?” 

The girl didn’t look up. 

“Emma. Emma Johnson.” 

“Emma. Can you tell me what this place is?” 

“I-I don’t know I just wanna go home!” 

“Okay. Umm” Clementine glanced back at the others who looked just as unsure of what to do. “Why can’t you go home?” 

“Because I’m trapped! These two men took me when I was on my way to class and now I’m stuck!” 

Where had she heard about this before? Clementine’s eyes widened in realization. Ericson has told them to be cautious around campus. A rumor about kidnappings was going around. She turned her attention back on the girl.

“It’s okay. Everything’s going to be okay. We’re going to help you?” Clementine said with a gentle smile. 

The girl looked up. “Really?” 

“Of course!” Louis added. “We can’t just leave someone who needs help.” His charismatic smile seemed to bring some life back into her eyes. She gave a quick nod. 

“If I have someone who can help me then… then maybe I can see my family again.” 

“We’ll help you get to your family.” Clementine replied. 

“So don’t give up.” Violet commented. 

“I-I won’t.” 

Suddenly the girl glowed disappearing before them. Clementine felt her head spin as an image of a Warehouse by the name of Stevenson’s flashed in her mind. The room around them slowly melted away bringing them back to the alleyway. The three of them look at each other. They had gotten out. 

“We got out!” Louis exclaimed. 

“I thought we’d never get out.” Violet let out a groan leaning her head against the alley wall. 

“That girl.” Clementine put a hand to her chin. “She said she was taken. What if that was true?

“If it is we should contact the police.” Louis suggested. 

“I agree.” Violet looked over at the two of them. 

Clementine and the others decided the best thing for them to do was to leave an anonymous call to which Clem insisted that they give the location that she had received before exiting the place. After the call was placed the three all let out sighs of relief. 

“Well. I’d say that was quite an adventurous day right Clem?” His smile faded when he saw Clementine tip over passing out for overexertion. 

“Clem!” He cried running forward.

“Shit!” Violet reached out to help. 

The two grabbed her just in time. Looking down at their friend who laid unconscious in their arms.


	3. The Destiny of Your Inner Voice

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Clementine finds herself back in the Velvet Room where Igor's answers only seemed to created more questions.

Clementine felt herself slip back into the realm that she had once visited before. The dark shade of blue filled her sights before she entered back into the courtroom. It’s blue tinted color and empty still felt unnerving to her. The gavel still stood suspended in the air, the long nosed man looking down at his bench. 

“Ah, we met again.” He looked up at her with his uncomfortable smile. His eyes looking to hers. “It seems you have finally come back after successfully making a contract.” 

A soft clapping sound appeared next to her. Looking over she saw James slowly hitting his hands together a tiny smile on his face. 

“Now that you’ve made the contract you must abide by it. You’re responsible for all your decisions on the path you have taken.” 

“I still haven’t signed a contract though?” Clementine said with a confused tone in her voice. 

Igor tilted his head slightly extended his hand. 

“You’ve awakened your persona.” Clementine recalled Ma’at. 

“A wild card. Indeed you are very special. The wild card is empty yet holds infinite potential in itself.” He stated in a matter of fact tone as if it was basic knowledge. Clementine felt her head spin. This was any but that. 

“Fear not. You will hone your power in due time and you’ll require our help to do so.” 

Clementine felt like she had a million questions to ask but before she could even choose which one to ask James had spoken up. 

“It’s quite impressive. Being able to open your sanctum sanctorum amidst a sanctum that was not your own.” His voice was barely a whisper, his eyes seemed warm yet they seemed to study her. 

“It’s unusual but fitting for the wild card.” 

“I’m lost, what do you mean by that?” Clementine asked. 

“Sorry. I forgot that you do not know. A sanctum is a person’s heart which takes material form when that person experiences an intense emotion.” James said things slowly and precisely.

“So that's where we ended up inside Emma’s heart?” Clementine’s face scrunched up in concentration as she tried to put the pieces together. 

“Yes. Her negative emotions were so powerful they created shadows,the creatures that had attacked you in there.” His mouth seemed to barely move while he talked.

“Okay but I was able to defeat them. Why?” 

“It was thanks to your persona, Ma’at. You passed the test set before you in the sanctum sanctorum casting aside your false self and accepting your true one.”

“The persona ability is the power to control one’s own heart and the heart is strengthened through bonds. Which you will be sure to meet along your path.” Igor’s high voice drew her attention.

This was a lot of information to take in. 

“There were some close calls but it seems like your potential is great.” He commented with a smile. For some reason that comment had made her heart twist with anger. 

“If you knew all this why did neither of you tell me when I first came here?” She took a step forward towards James, her eyes glaring into his. “It could’ve gotten me or my friends killed.” 

James seemed confused and slightly upset by her claim. 

“You were never in any true danger as the wild card; it is your destiny to walk this path. You couldn’t have fallen in the sanctum. Your ability and your persona wouldn’t have allowed it.” 

Clementine couldn’t believe that he wasn’t acknowledging the fact that they withheld information that would’ve helped her. 

Igor left out a chuckle. 

“Where will your awakened power of the wild card take you? I look forward to traveling the road of your destiny together.” 

He extended his hand once again. 

“From now on you will have access to my velvet room as a guest.” 

Clementine felt this strange heat fill her heart. 

“Till we meet again.”

Clementine felt her sense get overwhelmed as she traveled through the realm of blue that she had entered. 

Her eyes flicked up as she immediately sat up. She looked down at her right hand expecting to see the flower sigil but it was no longer there. It only took her a second to know that her lip was   
still cut. Wincing as she moved her mouth. She scanned the room that she was in. 

How did she get back home?

“Oh, you’re up. That’s good.” Lee’s warm voice caused her to look towards the doorway. 

“Lee. How did I get back here? What happened?” 

He walked forward standing by her bed. 

“Your two friends brought you back. They were really worried about both seeming a bit panicked that you had passed out.” Lee replied, sitting down on her bed. “I was worried too. It turns out it was overexertion. Clem, I know how important college is for you but just make sure you’re taking care of yourself okay?” 

“I’m sorry I worried you Lee. I promise I’ll be more careful from now on.”

Lee gave a gentle smile before a look of realization covered his face. 

“Oh that reminds me. Your friends left you their numbers. I think it would be good if you gave them a call or something?” He handed her a piece of paper where two numbers were written on . 

The first name written was Louis in a fancy cursive and second was Violet scrawled below the first number. 

“Thanks. I will.” 

After a few more minutes of Lee checking on her she was finally alone again. Taking out her phone she inputted the two numbers into her contacts before starting up a group text. 

C: _Hey, this is Clementine. I just want to let you know that I’m doing okay. Thanks for helping me get back home._

After only a few seconds Louis had already replied back.

L: _Clem! I’m so glad you’re okay. Vi and I were really worried about you._

V: _Glad you’re doing fine._

L: _we should celebrate surviving! That place was scary as shit._

Louis sent a picture to the group. He was standing next to a blonde boy who had a mullet. Both seemed pretty close as they smiled holding up their Starbucks drinks.  
He must be a good friend of Louis’

L: _With my buddy Marlon but after that I’m free._

V: _I don’t have any class so I can meet up_

C: _Alright then let’s meet up in front of the cafeteria in two hours._

V: _ok_

L: _can’t wait!_

Clementine day at one of tables she had arrived a few minutes early. The other two still had sometime before they had planned to meet up. 

“Clem!” Louis’ voice rang out, he gave a friendly wave as he made his way over. Violet was right by his side giving a small smile when she saw Clementine. 

“Hey.” She waved back before they joined her at the table. 

“So you’re really doing okay?” Louis asked with concern as he looked at her. 

“She’s fine Louis. Right?” Violet asked, her own expression seemed to match Louis’.

“Yeah. I am thanks to you two.” Clementine gave a reassuring smile which seemed to calm them down. 

“It was no problem.” Louis gave a heartwarming smile. 

“Yeah. Just glad you're safe.” Violet replied a ghost of a smile appeared on her face.

“It’s crazy that we survived that place though. It was some weird shit.” 

“Yeah it was fucking insane.” 

“About that…” Clem started looking towards her two friends. “I need to tell you something. She then proceeded to tell them all she knew about the situation. All of her conversations in the velvet room and her persona. 

“You know if I wasn’t there to see that I’d call you crazy.” Louis leaned forward on his arms. “But after what we saw. I’d say a weird long nosed bald man that guides you in the dream world isn’t that strange.” The others looked at him with slight confusion. He lifted up his hands. “I mean it’s still really weird but yeah doesn’t beat that place. What do you call it again?”

“A sanctum.” Clementine added. 

“Shit. This is all so crazy.” Violet murmured, her arms crossed. “I can’t believe we made it.” 

“I can’t believe Clementine has a superpower and a chosen one.” Louis exclaimed. 

“Well I wouldn’t go that far. After all I think this ‘path’ that Igor had mentioned is done.” Clementine commented, her hand pulling on her baseball cap. 

“Yeah. I guess that's true.” Violet looked towards her. 

Suddenly the TV drew their attention when a local News station shared its latest story. 

_Yesterday afternoon the sheriff's men went to Stevenson’s Warehouse based off an anonymous tip. There they found a young college girl named Emma Johnson who was found gagged and bound against a steel pipe. After talking with her it seems like this is the work of the notorious Saint John killers. A pair of brothers who have been preying on nearby college to get victims for human trafficking. The sheriff are unsure how the anonymous tipper knew this but they say they are grateful as this has been the first victim that they have been able to save._  
The three of them stared in disbelief at the screen before looking back at each other. 

“Holy shit.” Violet whispered. 

“I can’t believe it.” Louis stared at the table. 

Clementine felt an overwhelming rush of adrenaline as she registered what she had just heard.

Somehow thanks to the three of them they had saved a life. 

They had saved Emma Johnson.


	4. Unbreakable Links

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Clementine, Louis ad Violet enjoy some time together and grow closer as friends.

“Alright everyone. Let’s settle down.” Professor Walter's voice boomed throughout the classroom. Louis quickly hopped off the table sliding into the seat next to Clementine. Violet tossed her notebook open taking out an old pencil although it was unclear how many notes she’d actually take. 

“Today, we are going to talk about the ever present topic that has been discussed and debated throughout time. What is Justice?” He wrote that question on the whiteboard before turning back to his students. “Does anyone want to take a guess?” He looked around hopeful that someone would jump at the opportunity but no one did. Violet was just hoping that he would pick one of her two friends next to her. The professor slowly looked around the room. 

“Louis,”

Louis’ eyes shot up looking a bit nervous. 

“Y-yes?”

“How about you give it a try… what is justice?” 

“Umm..” Louis glanced at Clementine and Violet who both seemed stumped by the vagueness of the question as well. 

“Isn’t it being kind. Y’know helping others and doing the right thing?” he gave an awkward smiling hoping that the answer would be good enough.

“Well that sure is one view on it.” The professor turned back to the whiteboard and started to write out points. “Philosophers have been debating this topic since the birth of philosophy itself.   
There were some like Socrates who believed that justice was interconnected with fairness that everyone should get what they deserved. From getting paid what you are owed to getting a good grade, it all should be the amount that they deserve. He said things like mercy and benevolence may give people more than they deserve, but that justice insists upon them getting only what they deserve.” The room was filled with frantic typing and writing of students filling in their notes. Then there were others who thought similarly to how Louis responded,” he gestured up to Louis who gave an awkward wave. Polemarchus famously said that justice is ‘the art which gives good to friends and evil to enemies.’ But many thought that was too vague of an understanding.” 

Louis shook his head slightly in disagreement. “How could that be wrong.” he whispered to himself trying to keep up with the endless notes. 

“Thrasymachus disagreed with his fellow philosophers, saying that justice was really for the good of the strong. Mainly the ruler of the area. It really was to benefit the strong while being more harmful to those who obeyed and served him.”

“Wow, what an asshole.” Violet murmured.

The professor continued to talk about the different types of views on justice. The lecture felt like it would last forever.

“But those are just some of the Ancient Greek philosophers when we get into-” The alarm on his phone started to go off cutting off his sentence. “Well, it looks like we’ll have to continue this in the next class. Have a good rest of your day.” He gave a warm smile before packing up his bag.

“It's finally done!” Louis exclaimed leaning back in his chair. “I thought my hand was going to fall off from all that note taking.

“He really does go overboard when he gets passionate about what he talks about.” Clementine noted, shaking her sore hand.

“I don’t know how there can be so many different views on justice though. I always thought it was pretty straightforward.” Louis grabbed his bag, slinging it on his back.

“Yeah, I always thought so too.” Violet commented with a yawn. 

“Oh! That reminds me. Are you two free later today?” Louis looked over, his face filled with excitement. 

“I don’t have classes after four. Why?” Violet asked, looking over at him.

“I'm free after then too.” Clementine had finished putting her notebook away and had gotten up from her seat.

“We should hang out! I know this arcade nearby that has the best pizza.” He looked at them with a huge smile on his face. “Come on, what do you say?”

“Sure.” Violet replied with a shrug.

“It sounds like fun.”

“Then we shall meet by the fountain out front at 4:15.” Louis declared. 

With that the three parted ways, continuing with their classes. 

\----

Louis and Violet were already at the fountain by the time that Clementine had shown up. 

“Hey, sorry, I needed to talk to the professor about something.” Clementine said as she caught her breath. 

“No problem at all. Now follow me!” Louis yelled, turning around to direct the others. It was around a fifteen minute walk till they reached a red, faded sign that read Kingdom’s Arcade. It was   
clearly an older establishment. He quickly ran forward, opening the door for the other two. The inside of the building was filled with a variety of different arcade games. Some old classics like _Galaga_ and Pacman stood on the left side of the room and the right had some more modern games like _Dance Dance Revolution._

“I think we should start with a friendly game of Skeeball.” Louis suggested with a playful smile. 

Violet let out a snort. “With what I’ve seen of your aiming skills, this should be easy.”

Louis grasped his heart with a faked pained expression.“I’m truly hurt Vi, I may not have gotten that soda can in the trash, but that doesn’t mean I can’t aim.”  
“We’ll see about that.”

Clementine walked forward. Taking out some quarters from her pocket. Placing them in the slot, she looked at her two friends with a smirk. “Get ready, losers, because you’re all about to lose.”

“Those are bold words.” Louis smiled.

“Nuh uh. True words.” Clementine replied proudly. 

The three of them stood side by side as they prepared for their first toss. 

Clementine was the first to throw. Her ball sped down the lane, flying easily into the 40 point slot. Louis whistled, impressed by her skills. Violet was the next to throw, her ball landing safely in the 30 point slot. 

“You’re pretty good at skeeball, Vi.” Clementine looked over at her with a smile. Violet looked over before glancing at the floor with a small smile on her face.

“I know.” 

“Well, just watch the true master at work.” Louis threw back his arm with a dramatic flair before tossing the ball. It was clear that he was aiming for the 100 point slot, but the ball ricocheted off the wall, bouncing around the corner of a different slot before landing him 10 points.

“Wow. Louis, that was really something.” Violet said with a smirk. 

Louis turned towards her.“The first shot is always a warm up.”

“Sure it is.”

The game continued on in the same fashion. Clementine kept getting considerably high points. Her throws were always consistent, landing her 40 or 50 points each time. Violet was close behind getting 30 or 40 points, but never was able to catch up with Clementine. While Louis kept trying and trying to get 100 points to close the ever growing gap. 

“This one is it. I feel it!” He exclaimed, throwing his last ball of the game. It shot up, hitting the ceiling of the skeeball before landing in the 100 point slot. All three of their faces fell in shock. 

They couldn’t believe that he had made it. 

“Shit. You actually scored a decent shot.” Violet said with a smile.

“That was really cool, Louis!” Clementine said, causing him to awkwardly scratch the back of his head, a goofy smile on his face. 

“Thanks. But you still won, Clem. By a lot.”

The score said it: all her points were massively above his and comfortably above Violet’s. 

“What should we play next?” Clementine asked them as they walked around the arcade.

“Oh. Let's play Dance Dance Revolution!” Louis exclaimed, running over to it, placing in some money.

“Who wants to play against me first?” he asked with a confident smile. 

“I’ll do it.” Clementine stepped forward. Soon the competition was on as the two of them tried to keep up with all the button prompts. Louis' feet seemed to move automatically to the right buttons, smoothly transitioning from button to button. It was clear that he had played this game a lot. Clementine was no pushover though, keeping up with the prompts. She was able to maintain a pretty respectable score. 

“Not bad.” Louis looked over at her score. “Alright, Vi, it's your turn.”

“No.” Violet crossed her arms. “Not happening.” 

“I’ll buy you your share of the pizza.” Louis offered.

Violet made her way over, standing beside Clementine when the song started up. Clementine glanced over at Violet who seemed to be pretty stiff, missing a bunch of easy prompts. Her feet struggled to keep up as she swore under her breath. By the time the song was over it was clear who had won. 

“I’m choosing the next game.” Violet mumbled, leading the other two towards the _SoulCalibur_ arcade game. Characters fought on the screen, the words flashing, begging for someone to spend some quarters to play the game. Violet put in the required amount, standing on the right side. 

Louis quickly joined her. The two looked at the character select, each picking their fighter with relative ease. Soon the stage was set. The two fighters stood on opposite sides in the Phoenix Court. It was beautifully designed in red, green and gold. The announcer’s voice rang out.

_The delicate balance between good and evil wavers within you._

Louis had chosen Raphael who bowed dramatically with his blade. _Well then, let us dance._

Violet had selected Voldo whose body moved in unnerving ways as he made a monster groan.

_Battle 1 - Fight!_

Both Louis and Violet pushed their characters forward. Each button mashing to get the upper hand. 

“God, Violet. Could you have picked a more disturbing character?” Louis felt uncomfortable as Voldo attacked, scurrying around on the floor on all fours and attacking in uncomfortable ways. 

“I’m using a strategy.” Violet replied with a smirk. But this advantage that she hoped she’d get over Louis by selecting Voldo seemed to be backfiring slightly. _This guy is so fucking creepy._ Vi thought to herself, shuddering.

Only having a few bandages and pants to cover him and the fact that his eyes and mouth were bound didn’t help. 

Even though he was a disturbing character, he was a strong fighter. His knives on his hands hit Raphael, causing him to stumble. Violet kept up the attack, getting Louis stuck in a loop until she had won the first battle. Soon the second battle started and Louis went on the attack, hitting Violet with his rapier, trying to keep up the attack. But Voldo was too slippery, dodging an attack and getting in his own attack. The match was soon decided. 

Violet and Louis stepped away from the machine. Violet looked content. 

“Let's grab some food.” Clementine suggested. The others agreed and soon they sat at a table filled with pizza. The trio laughed and talked as they inhaled their pizza and before they knew it it was time for them to part ways. 

“That was really fun. We should do it again.” Clementine said, opening the door for the others. 

“I agree. I think this is the start of a lifelong friendship between the three of us.” Louis declared. “Eating pizza, playing games, what could be better?” 

“Text me whenever and I’ll let you know if I’m free.” Violet added. With that the three went their separate ways.

It wasn’t long before they hung out again. Nearly every day of the week the trio could be spotted together, hanging out at different locations and having fun. 

L: _So you two are free tomorrow?_

C: _Yep after three I’m free._

V: _Sorry made other plans_

L: _Oh okay have fun_

Violet made her way over to the nearby table where two identical redheads were busy talking. 

“Hey.” Violet sat down across from them. 

“Hey, Vi.” Sophie said, turning to look at her. “How are you doing?”

“We got you a drink.” Minnie passed forward the chamomile tea. 

“I’m doing fine. Thanks.” She grabbed the tea, taking a sip from it. 

“So how are classes going for you?” Sophie asked, taking a sip of her latte. 

“Fine, I guess. They're a pain in the ass, but my professors are nice.” Violet replied, leaning forward. 

“That's good. My art professor is cool, but looking at the syllabus...” Sophie let out a tired groan. “The class is going to kick my ass.” 

“Sometimes it feels like these professors don’t think that we’re taking more than just their one class.” Minnie sighed, sipping her coffee. “My schedule is gonna be crazy this year.” 

“You can take some classes off if it's too much.” Sophie looked over with concern.

“No, it's fine. I wanna get the rest of my general ED done as fast as I can.”

“There’s way too many of those.” Violet angrily mumbled. 

“I know! But at least we can help each other find the best professors for each course. I heard that Professor Weathers is a good professor if you need to get one of your humanities requirements done.” Sophie suggested with a smile. 

“Thanks.” Violet returned the smile. 

“Shit.” Minnie mumbled, glancing down at her watch. “I got to get to track practice. Sorry, Vi. We’ll have to catch up another time.” Minnie looked at her apologetically.

“Sure. I’ll text you.” 

“I’ll see you later tonight?” Minnie asked her twin who nodded.

“Yep, don't push yourself too hard.”

“I won’t. Promise. ” Minnie replied before getting up and sprinting off towards the field. 

Sophie’s face fell.

“I hope she keeps that promise. But I don’t know. Minnie always seems like she’s trying to prove something. I just don’t want her to get burnt out.” Sophie looked back at Violet.

“She’ll be fine.” 

“Right. Yeah.” Sophie’s smile reappeared on her face. “Let's talk about some other things. It's only been the first few weeks, but is there anyone you like?”

Violet looked away.

“Oh. So there is?’

“I don’t wanna talk about it,” Violet looked over at Sophie, then glanced aside. “Not yet,”

“Ok, that’s fine,” Sophie agreed.

The two continued to talk for an hour about different topics before Sophie stood up. 

“Got art class. It was nice talking with you. Text me when you’re free again.” 

“I will.” 

The rest of the week flew by and it was finally the weekend. Louis had suggested that the three of them celebrate getting through another week by going to McDonalds, to which Violet immediately agreed. The three shared a booth, each with their own tray of food. 

“Holy shit, Vi! That's a lot of chicken nuggets.” Louis exclaimed, looking at the boxes stacked on her tray. 

“It's not that many. I had a coupon.” She grumbled before opening her first box. 

“Have you guys started on that philosophy assignment?” Clementine asked, tossing a french fry in her mouth. 

“No.” The pair replied at the same time, their mouths filled with food. 

“You want to get together tomorrow and work on it?” Clementine offered. “Three heads are better than one.”

“That would be great! Can we meet at your place-” Louis’ sentence was cut short when the trio overheard the news station that was playing on someone’s phone in the booth behind them.   
_There has been another kidnapping by the Saint John Killers. A girl by the name of Amelia Reed was taken somewhere nearby Ericson University. The sheriff's department is telling students to be extra vigilant during this time and to report any suspicious activity._

The rest of the news seemed to fade out for the three of them as they looked at each other. There had been another kidnapping. What should they do?


	5. Lonely As The Moon

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The trio decides to jump into another rift in hopes of saving the next victim.

News had spread quickly throughout the town. The sheriff had issued some of his men to be around Ericson University making sure that the Saint Johns Killers weren’t still nearby. The dean of students had also sent out an email to all students stating that for the next couple of days classes were canceled and that no students should be on campus. 

“Are you sure this is the best way to get inside campus?” Louis asked as he helped lift Clementine up some dumpsters that lay against the University’s walls. Violet had already gone up the wall, her hand outstretched to help up her friend. 

“I’m sure. Once we get up this wall we jump down, run through a few walkways and then we’re there. Hopefully the rift is in the same spot.” Violet whispered, grunting as she helped up Clementine.

“Thanks.” Clementine gave a smile to which Violet returned before helping up the last member of the group. All of them felt anxious not knowing where the different men that the sheriff had stationed were; it felt like their eyes were already upon them. The three slowly jumped down, hoping that they weren’t too loud. Violet led them down the route, weaving through the different parts of campus. She stopped when she reached the alleyway, stepping aside so that Clementine could examine the spot. Just as they had guessed, another rift had appeared. This time it's swirling blue vortex laid on the ground, the whispers trying to coax them into falling through it once again. 

_Do these appear here because it’s where the victim is taken?_

“You ready?” Clementine looked back at the other two who both shared a determined expression, nodding in agreement. She took a deep breath, centering herself before stepping forward. The rift cracked open, its whispering growing louder as it consumed the three students. It was a strange sensation falling through the rift as if they were freefalling through the air. Landing with a grunt, the three got back up on their feet. Their gaze turned upward to the rift that had already begun to close up. 

“Well, there’s no going back now.” Louis gave a nervous smile to the others before his eyes caught sight of the only object in the room. “What the shit.” he murmured, causing the other two to look over. Their own eyes widened at the scene. There standing in this white, bare, circular room was a girl trapped in a see-through oval. Her face twisted in fear as she stared at them.

“Please help me.” Tears were streaming down her face. Violet felt her stomach twist. This girl looked eerily similar to her. Her short blonde hair that stuck to her face thanks to the tears. Her blueish green eyes red from her crying. Even her physique seemed similar. The others seemed to pick up on these similarities too as they looked from the girl to Violet. Clementine slowly made her way over along with the others. 

“Hey there. What’s your name?” She tried to make her voice as calm as possible to hopefully help her calm down. 

“Amelia.” the girl whispered. “Amelia Reed.”

“Hi, Amelia. I’m Clementine.” Clementine motioned towards the others. “This is Louis.”

He gave a warm smile and a wave. “And that’s Violet.” Violet barely looked up giving a little nod. Something was bothering her. Was it because Amelia looked like her?

“We’re gonna get you out of there.” Louis walked forward, placing his hand on the oval prison. “Just hang on for a little bit more, okay?”

Amelia gave a small nod.“Okay.”

The three walked away from the oval towards the corner. Once they had figured they were far away enough so she couldn’t hear them, they began to talk.

“We gotta get her out there.” Louis began.

“I agree. But we need to be smart about it. We should look around to see if there’s anything we could use to break her out. If we just start hitting it who knows what that could do to her. We also need to be careful of the Shadows that might be here.” Clementine instructed, glancing over to Violet who seemed to be paying attention for the most part. 

“Well, if we do run into those freaks, I got just the thing to kick their asses!” Louis swung the backpack off his back, opening it up. “Du du du dun!” Louis pulled out what looked to be a picket stick wrapped in old lights.

“What the fuck is that?” Violet grumbled, her arms crossed. 

“It's a weapon to protect myself.” he stated proudly before realization struck him. “Oh shit, I didn’t get something for you.” he desperately looked through his bag.

“I’ll be fine. I’ll just punch them if we run into them.” 

“Or you could use this!” Louis revealed his weapon of choice for her, a butterknife. 

Violet snatched the butter knife, waving it around angrily.“What the hell am I gonna do with this?” 

“You could stab them.”

“Not with this!”

“Okay.” Clementine’s voice caused them to stop arguing. “We have bigger things we need to focus on. “If we do run into shadows, I’ll be in front and with my Persona we should be safe.” Her eyes searched the room, looking to see if there was any way out. A pale grey door stood out against the bright white of the room. “We’ll go through that door.” Violet and Louis nodded, making their way over there with her. When Clementine opened the door she was hit with the smell of grass. Looking down she noticed that there was a staircase that spiraled upwards. It was covered in what looked like artificial grass. The sounds of cleats and whistles going off rang throughout. She paused, taking another deep breath. For some reason this place seemed to fill her with this uncontrollable dread. Motioning to go up the stairs, she led the trio forward. Their footsteps crunched against the grass as they slowly made their way up the spiraling staircase.

Violet paused.

“Hey. Look.” 

Louis and Clem stopped to look at what could’ve gotten her attention. Against the stark white wall was a pentagon shaped windowed lightly tinted in black. Through it they could see the first floor where Amelia still stood trapped in the oval. 

“Let’s keep-” Clementine’s sentence was cut short by the groan of a nearby shadow who slithered down the stairs to meet them. Taking a step back Clementine removed her glove, the sigil burning bright as she placed it hand against her heart. 

“Persona!” her hair blew back in the wind as Ma’at appeared behind her. Her calm and commanding presence seem to cause the shadow to flinch. With a quick command, a gust of wind attacked the shadow causing it some damage but not nearly as much as it did in the other sanctum. _Shit. My magic must not be that effective._

Louis ran forward swinging his picket stick which sent the shadow flying back, crumpling against the stairs.“Holy shit!” He exclaimed. There should’ve been no possible way that the wimpy stick he was carrying could do that kind of damage. The trio continued up the stairs, soon running into another enemy. Clementine tried another attack from the side while Louis attacked it head on. 

Suddenly one appeared near Violet who dodged its attack before swinging her fist, not realizing that it still had the butterknife in it. The knife cut deep as the shadow oozed out from its wound falling to the floor in a pained cry. Violet looked at the butterknife in disbelief. 

“There must be some boosting effect on objects in the sanctum.” Clementine observed. “That has to be the reason why that picket stick and butterknife are doing so much damage.” With that they pressed forward, making it to the second floor where a single door stood. Clementine led the way, slowly opening the door to reveal something they weren’t expecting. The room looked exactly like the alleyway on campus. As they walked inside they heard voices repeating lines over and over again as if this room was a moment frozen in time. 

“No, please-” Amelia’s voice was cut off.

“Honestly, we should’ve gone for some more like her sooner. No one misses low income kids.” An unnerving deep Southern voice commented.

“Shut up, Andy. I know that now!” another voice snapped back.

The three sentences repeated again and again. 

Louis' eyes widened before narrowing, his face twisting in hate. “Those assholes are going to pay. We're gonna save Amelia.”

Violet stood there frozen, her mind overwhelmed by the information.

 _Low income…_

“Vi, you okay?” Clementine looked over with concern. 

“I’m fine.” she snapped back. “I.. sorry.”

All of a sudden the sound of laughter echoed throughout the room. A shadowy figure appeared. He looked to be a man in his early forties, swaying back and forth, slightly stumbling on his feet as he spoke. 

“You… Why are you home so late? What are you hiding?” His words were slurred, his eyes fixated on the three of them. Violet backed away slowly, her body trembling slightly. The man burst into his other form, the shadow lunging forward. 

“Persona!” Clementine yelled, blocking the incoming attack from harming her friends. “Garu.” she commanded. A slice of wind cut past her face, hitting the shadow, but it didn’t do anything.  
“Shit. We gotta move.” She yelled, guiding the others further up the staircase. They sprinted all the way up to the third floor, slamming it open, gasping for air as they entered the room. It was a blank room except for two names on opposite sides of it, too faded to read. 

Violet was acting strange. Clementine looked over at her again. Something about this sanctum was making her uncomfortable, more so than usual. “Violet.” 

“I’m fine! I told you I was fine before, so back off!” She screamed, her face twisted in anger. Violet’s attention was abruptly drawn away when a corridor appeared out of nowhere. She felt an overwhelming urge to walk down it. Clementine and Louis seem to pick up on this fact.

“Violet. Just take a second and breath. The sanctum sanctorum is a dangerous place.” Clementine warned.

“Should she even go in there? There’s no guarantee it will work.” Louis sounded concerned. 

“My powers aren’t working as well in this sanctum. It may be that this is the only way for us to save Amelia.” Clementine countered. 

Violet didn’t move.

“Okay. Vi, just take a minute. There’s no need to rush.” Louis added, going forward to place his hand on her shoulder. She hit it back, sprinting down the hallway and busting open the door. 

“Violet!” her friends called out, but the door slammed shut behind her. 

“Damn it! Fuck!” Louis yelled, ramming against the door.

“Louis. Calm down.” Clementine’s voice cracked, her own worry and fear bleeding through. “We need to get to Vi!” He looked over at Clem before hitting his hands against the door again. “She didn’t prepare at all! Who knows what could happen!” 

“Louis!” Her tone caused him to stop. “We have to trust in Violet. That’s all we can do right now.”

Louis nodded, his face falling as he sat against the wall. Clementine made her way to the other, sitting next to him. It was unnerving being on the opposite side of this situation. Clementine knew that Violet was about to face her worst fears. 

Violet’s eyes widened as she saw the figure standing before her. She couldn’t believe it. It was herself. 

The construct looked over at her with disdain. “It's about time you showed up.”

Its head twitched slightly. Or did it? It all happened so quickly that Violet couldn’t tell. 

“Who-”

“Who am I?” The construct stood before her. “I am you and you are me. We are one and the same.”

“But that's not possible.” Violet’s head spun as she tried to process what was happening. 

“It is. I know everything about your past, your mistakes, your many flaws.” The voice suddenly changed to one Violet hadn’t heard in years. “Violet shows a surprising lack of empathy while dealing with others, so much so that after witnessing her-” 

“Stop it!” Violet snapped. The construct paused, smiling as they noticed Violet slowly backing away into the corner. 

“You know those adults at that school for troubled youth were a bunch of assholes, but you have to give them credit for one thing. They were honest.” The construct gave a half-hearted laugh.   
“I’m sure your grandma would agree with their assessment.”

Violet’s eyes shot up before returning to the floor. Her body fell to the ground, her arms slowly wrapping around her knees. 

“Even after all that time at the school, it seems like they didn’t fix anything about you. You’re still defective.” The construct towered over her. “I’m honestly surprised you still have any friends. Oh, wait.” It’s twisted smile fell upon Violet. “You only have two and are they really your friends? I mean sure, Minnie and Sophie hang out with you, but it's got to be out of obligation or some other bullshit. Not because they care about you.”

Violet felt her heart sink.

“No one wants a defective friend. Especially one as broken as you. Who wants a friend who watched her own grandma bleed out in front of her, unwilling to even call for help, instead simply returning to her cartoons!” The construct hissed. “The school couldn’t help you because you’re broken beyond repair. Friends, family, everyone leaves you because you’re too fucked up to love! But I can help.” The construct’s voice took on a sickenly sweet tone. “All you need to do is sign something.”

A contract suddenly appeared in Violet’s hand, a quill laid gently in her other hand. 

“Sign it.” 

Violet’s hand hovered over the paper. Slowly she pressed the quill against it. A red, blood-like substance bled through.

_My friends…_

Her eyes widened as she remembered the conversation that she’d had with Clementine and Louis. Clementine had warned Violet of the dangers of the sanctum sanctorum. That it would reveal her deepest fears. She glanced up at the construct who glared at the page. It wanted her to sign it, but it had to be a trap. _Clementine and Louis are on the other side. They’re waiting for me._

Slowly she stood up, dropping the quill and contract. 

“I have friends.” she murmured.

“Excuse me?” the being asked with annoyance. 

“Even though I yelled at them, I know they’re waiting for me on the other side. All my life I’ve been a goddamn coward, pushing away anyone who would care. But not anymore.” Her eyes shot up a fire burning within them. “I won’t be a coward anymore! I _will_ change!” 

The construct backed away, eyes widening.

“No, that's a lie. You’re defective!” The construct screeched, cracking as a bright light overtook their chest. Letting out a cry of misery it exploded, leaving behind only dust.

Violet stared in disbelief, overwhelmed by what had just happened. 

Suddenly a sharp pain entered Violet’s chest. Her heart screamed out in pain as a white hot fire seemed to consume it. Falling to her knees, she clutched her chest. Her sight became blurry with tears as her hand burned in agony, the flames slowly forming the sigil on it. 

“It’s about time you awakened.” a young girl’s voice called out from across the room. Violet’s eyes lifted to meet hers. There across the room where the construct once stood was a young blonde girl wearing a simple gray dress. She sat upon a guillotine, her legs lazily swinging back and forth. The guillotine's sharp blade shone, waiting for an opportunity to fall down and complete its task. “I am La Guillotine.” 

Violet tried to speak, but was unable to.

_I am thou, thou art I.  
By casting away the falsehoods placed within your heart and opening your eyes to the truth,  
I have come from the depths of your soul  
to help in your pursuit of justice. _

The girl smiled. “I look forward to working together.” Suddenly she disappeared into a ball of light, flying towards Violet’s heart and disappearing when it hit her chest. 

The door abruptly slammed open. Louis let out a sigh of relief as he swept Violet up in a hug. “Vi, oh thank god. Shit, I thought…” his voice cracked.

Violet returned his hug for a second before pushing away.“I’m okay.”

“You were gone for _forty minutes._ It really scared the shit out of me.” Louis said, taking a deep breath.

“I’m so glad you’re safe.” Clementine gave a warm smile before hugging her friend. 

“So I guess this means Clem isn’t the only one with a persona.” Louis gestured towards Violet’s right hand which was covered in a silver fingerless glove.

“I guess so.” 

“Well, we should keep moving. Maybe now we can make some progress towards freeing Amelia.”

“Right.” Violet nodded quickly, leading the way down to the second floor where they entered the alleyway room again. The drunken shadow swayed back and forth. This time Violet stepped forward. Hesitating for only a second, she ripped off her glove, slamming her right hand against her heart. 

“Persona!” The girl appeared behind her, kicking her legs slowly back and forth. 

Without a second thought, Violet sprinted forward, wielding her butterknife. La Guillotine was right beside her and the two attacked the shadow viciously. As the blade of the guillotine fell, the girl gave a devious smile. The ends of her blonde hair turned red like blood dripping down slowly onto the bottom of the guillotine. The blade sliced the shadow in half.

“Holy shit.” Louis whispered. Violet’s persona was terrifying. 

Violet turned back to them with a smile. 

Suddenly James’ voice echoed through Clementine’s head. 

_I am thou, thou art I  
Thou hast acquired a new bond  
It shall become the voice of justice  
That soothes thine anguish from oppression_

_With the birth of the Moon Persona,  
One of loneliness and illusion,  
I have obtained the tongue of truth   
That shall lead to balance and new power. _

She stared at Violet who was busy talking with Louis, a ghost of a smile appearing on Vi’s face.

 _The Moon Persona… I wonder how long she’s felt like she stands alone?_ Clementine’s train of thought was interrupted when a second room appeared, connected to this one. 

“What the hell.” She whispered as the three walked through, noticing the silhouettes of two familiar shadows. They were the same ones they had dealt with in Emma’s sanctum. It must be the Saint John Killers. Before they could attack however, a piercing scream came from the first floor. The three looked at each other with worried expressions. Dashing down the stairs to get to Amelia, the three struggled to fight off the oncoming shadows. A lone small shadowy figure scurried off to hide. 

“Fucking move!” Violet yelled, her Persona slicing through the enemies. Soon they were back to the first floor. But the sight before them caused them to freeze. Amelia was screaming out in pain, begging for help. Her hands wet with blood as she tried to claw her way out.“Shit.” Violet ran forward, summoning her persona to try to break her out. Louis swung his weapon desperately, but it seemed to do nothing. Clementine’s persona seemed to be of no use either. 

“PLEASE! I CAN’T BREATHE! I’LL DO ANYTHING!” Amelia’s voice cried out, hoarse from yelling. In an instant she stopped, her eyes turning glassy, losing all the life inside them as if her soul had left her body. It collapsed to the ground like a lifeless puppet. 

“Fuck!” Louis yelled, sliding to the ground.

Violet stared in horror, unable to process what had just happened.

The ceiling above them started to crack as the sanctum fell apart, slowly caving in. Louis jumped up, shielding Clem and Violet with his body to protect them from any falling debris. But the debris disappeared as it fell, revealing the real world once again as the trio stood in the alleyway. 

“We need to run.” Clementine whispered. She guided them silently through campus until they had safely escaped. 

“Do you think… she didn’t die, did she?” Louis’ voice wavered slightly.

“She…” Violet’s voice faltered. 

“We won’t know until later.” Clementine tried to keep a calm voice. “For now we need to go back to our homes. We’ll know in the next few days if something happened to her.”

The other two looked really shook by what had happened, but nodded. They each split off, heading back to their homes.

The next few days felt like an eternity. Louis, Violet and Clem all felt like they couldn’t concentrate on anything. Their fears and worries overwhelmed them as they all tried to hope for the best. Tried to believe that Amelia was still okay. 

Clementine struggled to focus on her assignment when an urgent text from Louis appeared. 

_CHECK THE NEWS_

She ran down the stairs and grabbed the remote, turning on the TV.  
 _Earlier this morning, the sheriff and his men discovered the body of local college student Amelia Reed in an abandoned building. It seems she had died a few days ago at the hands of her captors. The family…._

The rest of the news faded out from Clem’s mind. Her stomach dropped at this news. Amelia was dead.


	6. Mourning In Silence

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The trio try to go through their daily lives while feeling the guilt and grief of Amelia's death.

Clementine felt her stomach turn as her eyes were trying to adjust to the overwhelming dark blue again. Once again she stood in the courtroom and once again Igor stood in front of her. His wide eyes piercing into her soul as he studied her. 

“Ah! I see you’re back again.” 

_Not like it seems I have much of a choice._

“James won’t be joining us today.” Igor’s hand gesture to the empty space beside her. She glanced over. It was odd not having the attendee there. Why was he missing? 

“I suppose you’re wondering why he’s not here.” His high voice caused her attention to focus back on him. “He was a bit upset after what happened to that girl.” 

Clementine’s eyes widened realizing he was talking about Amelia. Her stomach dropped at the memory of that day. 

“Your journey is one full of turmoil. It seems that it has occurred sooner than I had thought.” His words seemed to fill her with anger. He was treating the girl’s death so casually. 

“She wasn’t just some obstacle on my path,” her voice was thick with disgust. “She was a person with family and friends and now… she’s gone.” Her gaze fell to the floor. _I couldn’t save her._

“Ah, well let us hope this is not one of many.” Igor replied with his unnerving smile. 

What was that supposed to mean?

“Until we meet again.” 

“Wait!” Clementine yelled reaching out but it was too late she was already back to her reality. Her arm outstretched as she woke up. Slowly she got up getting ready for another day. Lee and AJ wished her a good day and then she was off. When she arrived at Ericson she went around the long way to her class wanting to visit the memorial before English class. There in the small corner laid a picture of Amelia. Her smiling face staring back at Clementine. A few notes and candles stood beside it. _Has it really been a week?_

She felt her shoulders drop. She couldn’t believe that it had only been a week. It felt way longer especially with how Violet had been acting. She knew that this death would affect her friend but not this much. She still showed up to classes and sat with them but as soon as class was over she would leave disappearing without a trace. Ignoring their text messages and attempts to reconnect with her. Her eyes fell upon a single sunflower that laid against the photo frame. Louis must’ve just stopped by. Amelia’s death really shook him too. It had affected all of them. At least he would talk with her though. Open up a bit whenever the conversation gets brought up. But Violet. How the hell was she going to know if she was okay. Neither her or Louis knew Violet’s dorm number. So they would just have to wait. Clementine let out a tired sigh leaning down and placed down her own offering. Standing up she took a deep breath. She had to go to class.

Violet laid on her bed, her legs dangling off the end as she stared up at the ceiling. She wanted to stop feeling like this. The weight of guilt consumed her. Her stomach feeling like a ball of lead was stuck inside it. Every day felt like a blur. It was all the same; it never changed. She wasn’t sure if she deserved it to change. Suddenly her phone buzzed against her desk causing her to glance over. It had to be one of them again. Why couldn’t they just leave her alone? She was fine. She had hoped that they would’ve stopped by now that silencing her phone would make her stop thinking about it. But none of them seem to give up. Groaning she leaned over to grab her phone to check the time. Messages from Clem, Louis, Sophie and Minnie plagued her lock screen. _Shit._

She looked at the time 12:10. She hadn’t eaten yet today but that could wait. She needed to get to her class. Rolling off her bed she slung her bag over her shoulder. Why was she even bothering to go to class? She wasn’t planning on taking note. But maybe it would distract her from her thoughts. Closing the door behind she made her way towards Building C in hopes to give her mind a break. 

Louis sat on the bench anxiously tapping his foot. Marlon said he would be here soon but he was taking forever. Louis felt his mind spinning. Why had he ordered coffee? Caffeine only seemed to make it worse.

“Hey! Sorry I’m late. Kinesiology class went over by a few minutes.” Marlon apologized, sitting down as he caught his breath. 

“That’s okay.” Louis replied with a smile. 

“So, what was it that you needed to talk about?” Marlon looked over with concern before accepting the drink that Louis got him. 

“It’s my friend, Vi. She’s been going through a rough time and I wanna help her, but it doesn’t seem to be working.” Louis played with his coffee cup tearing of the cardboard holder. 

“Well. what are you doing?” 

“I’ve been sending her texts. Checking in on her, trying to encourage her, but whenever I see her in philosophy class she just completely shuts off. Ignoring me and Clem.” 

Marlon looked over at the nearby grass. Trying to find the right advice to give his friend. 

“Give her some space. When the time is right, trust that she’ll open up. I know it’s not the best advice, but it’s all I got.” Marlon looked back at his friend with a sympathetic smile. Louis let out an annoyed groan. 

“I figured you’d say that.” Louis took a sip of his coffee. “It’s not exactly the easiest thing for me to do.” 

“But it could be the right thing.” Marlon countered. He glanced down at his watch. “Don’t you have philosophy class in like ten minutes?”

“Oh, shit!” Louis exclaimed, scrambled to his feet and snatched up his backpack. “I’ll see you for movie night?” 

“Yep. Bring some better candy next time though.” Marlon called out to Louis who was already running to class.

“I will!” 

She only had twenty minutes before class, but she needed to visit the memorial. It had been almost two weeks since her death. Violet’s eyes stared at the picture of Amelia. The girl who had died before she could save her. The image of her clawing at the sphere and begging for help was burned into Violet’s mind. She didn’t know how many times she had seen it but she wished it would stop. 

“I’m sorry.” Violet whispered, her eyes downcast. If she was just a little bit faster. Maybe this would’ve turned out differently. But she wasn’t. All that time that she was stuck in her sanctum sanctorum they could’ve helped Amelia. Instead she received her persona too late. She wasn’t strong enough. She looked around at the offerings left at the memorial shrine. A sunflower and delicate white lily laid side by side. _Louis and Clem must’ve left these._ She leaned down, opening up her backpack. Gently taking out a flower offering of her own. It was a small purple hyacinth. Placing it alongside the other two she gave a sad smile before lifting herself up and walking towards her next class. 

When she arrived at class, Clementine and Louis gave a small smile. She dropped her bag by her seat, sliding into it. 

“Hey, Violet.” Louis leaned forward. 

“Hey.” She mumbled before staring off into space. Louis and Clem looked at each other with concerned expressions, but quickly got out their notebooks as class began. Glancing over from time   
to time to see that Violet hadn’t even bothered to get out her notebook let alone take a single note. 

“Vi, you wanna grab some food?” Clementine asked with a warm smile. Violet shook her head. 

“Not hungry. I’ll see you guys later.” 

“Okay.” Clementine sounded sad, but it didn’t stop Violet from walking away. 

“Violet!” The professor’s voice called out. She turned to look at him standing by his desk in the front of the room. “I need to speak with you.” 

She hesitated for a moment wondering if she could just leave anyway. But seeing his serious expression she figured it would best to stay. Slowly making her way down to him she noticed that his expression had changed. He waited for the last students to clear out before he spoke.

“You haven’t been turning in your assignments recently, and I may have a lot of students to keep track of, but that doesn’t mean I won’t notice when you aren’t taking notes.” Walter’s voice was calm and gentle. Leaning against his desk, he waited for Violet to respond. She didn’t. Her eyes were glued to the floor. 

“I know it must be hard losing a fellow student. Amelia was a good kid.” His voice wavered slightly. He paused, taking a deep breath. “Grief affects us all in different ways and we each deal with it in our own way, but…” he looked at her with a sympathetic smile. “Violet, it’s okay to show it.” 

Violet looked up with wide eyes. Her face, a mixture of confusion and sadness. Tears began to prick at her eyes. She quickly looked away, trying to hide the tears that were blurring her vision. 

“You’re not alone. You’ve got people who care about you so just make sure you take care of yourself, okay?” 

Violet used her shirt to wipe away her tears.“Okay.” 

“Alright. Well if you ever wanna talk, my door is always open.” He stepped forward, giving a pat on her shoulder. “Sorry I had you stay after class. I’ll see you in the next class.” 

Violet nodded, turning to leave. She wasn’t expecting that, but it did seem to help. When she had gotten back to her dorm room she glanced at her car keys before pulling out her phone. Maybe it was about time that she checked her messages. She sat down on her bed scrolling through the numerous messages left by her friends. Pausing when she opened one that was in the group chat from Clem and Louis. _We’re here for you. Whenever you’re ready._

Her eyes read and reread the message, her mind spinning as she recalled the words that she had told her construct. _All my life I’ve been a goddamn coward, pushing away anyone who would care. But not anymore. I won’t be a coward anymore! I will change!”_

She didn’t know why she had forgotten those words until now. It was time that she made good on her vow. She had been so caught up in herself that she had done the very thing she said she wouldn’t. But no longer. She wasn’t going to keep pushing them away. Her thumbs inputted her message, sending it swiftly to her friends. _I crave chicken nuggets._

Within seconds someone had replied.

L: _We can’t have that! This calls for an emergency McDonald’s run!_

C: _I second that._

Violet gave a small smile when she read the messages.

V: _meet me by the fountain in ten minutes._

With that she put away her phone, grabbing her wallet and sliding out the door.


	7. Reclaiming Their Fractured Duty

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Louis hears about a kidnapping and thinks it's the work of the Saint John Killers. But when he brings it up with the others it's clear that Amelia's death is still affecting them.

It had been a week since Violet had reached out to Clementine and Louis. It was a pleasant surprise that the two of them were thankful for. They had really missed their friend and so Louis made it his mission to make up for lost time. So the trio spent many hours hanging out together enjoying each other's company and the peace it brought them.

“Really, Louis?” Violet let out a sigh. “That’s your ’genius’ plan for the group project? A playdough Plato?”

Clementine stifled a laugh.

“What? It’s a good idea. I don’t see you coming up with any ideas.” He huffed, taking a swig of his tea.

“He does have a point, Vi.” Clementine tried not to pick a side with these two; it always seemed like the right choice to play the neutral card. “But Louis, that won’t work for our project. So we should regroup and start brainstorming again.”

The three of them sat in silence hoping that one of the other two would come up with a good idea.

Clementine let out a tired sigh.

Louis suddenly put down his pencil, his expression was one of uncertainty. The two girls looked at him expectantly.

“Spit it out, Lou.” Violet mumbled, laying down her pencil.

Louis paused clearly his throat loudly.

“Well… I heard from Marlon who heard it from his friend that his roommate's brother got taken. So I thought it sounded like the work of the Saint John killers and thought…” He paused not sure if he wanted to continue that sentence. The group sat in the tense silence that his words brought. Ever since Violet had rejoined there had been an unspoken rule among them. No Persona talk. Whether that be about sanctums, Amelia or any potential new leads. Violet looked down at the ground a frown across her face.

“We could check out the alley.” Clementine’s words caused Violet’s eyes to look over at her. A mixture of shock and confusion was on her face.

“It's the right thing to do.” Clementine stated, her own nerves rising with her words. “There may not even be anything there.”

“Fine.” Violet whispered, her arms crossed. Louis gave an appreciative smile towards Clementine before they made their way over to the alleyway. All three of them felt anxious as they returned to the familiar sight. But when they arrived there was no rift to be seen.

“There’s nothing here.” she looked back towards Louis and Violet.

“No, that can’t be. There has to be a rift somewhere. Maybe it's in another spot.” Louis’ voice shook, the hope that was once in his eyes gone.

“Goddammit, Louis, enough!” Violet hissed, storming over to him. Louis backed away slightly, raising his hands up defensively.

“Calm down, Vi. I just wanted to help-”

“No, what you wanted was to get your own Persona! You think that because you’re the only one without one it's your turn to get one! This isn’t some fucking game!” Her words seemed to cut him deep as his face twisted with anger.

“That's not the reason why I want to do this! We have the chance to do the right thing. I want to save people and I’m not going to stop just because you’re stuck on Amelia’s death!” he froze,  
shocked by his own words. Violet’s face fell, her expression bleak.

“Vi-” he slowly reached out his hand.

“Fuck you!” she snapped, smacking his hand away. She turned, disappearing around the corner. Louis tried to take a step forward but Clementine stopped him. “Not now, Louis.”

“I didn’t mean to say that.” His eyes filled with sadness. “I just wanted to help.”

“I know. But both of you said things that were too far. Right now you both need to take a step back.” she said with a gentle voice. Louis nodded solemnly before turning to leave. She watched as  
he went his own way. _They both need space right now._ She looked back at the alleyway. _Maybe there is a rift somewhere else though._ She could just forget about it and move on with her day. But she couldn’t help but feel the need to see this through. It would be better to try than not try at all. Clementine looked around the campus, going to places that could be potential spots for kidnappings. Checking out other alleys and closed-off corners around Ericson until she stumbled upon a rift floating in a corner by Building N. It made sense why it would be there. The building was only used for a few spare classes and not many students walked by it. Taking out her phone, she quickly sent a text to the other two. They had to act now; there was no other choice.

Violet stared at the plate with a frustrated expression. She didn’t know why she got chicken nuggets if she wasn’t going to eat them. Her emotions were too clouded right now to have an appetite. Louis had gone too far with what he said. Even if it had a kernel of truth to them. She stared blankly up at the ceiling. Not like her words had been kind either though. _Need to cool off. Then I should probably talk to him. Maybe._

Her phone buzzed against her leg. Checking it, she noticed that it was from Clem.

_Rift found. Meet me by Building N in fifteen minutes._

“Shit.” Violet whispered.

Now that it was a reality she couldn’t ignore it. She had to face it. Right before she left she froze, looking towards the cafeteria kitchen. Maybe if she had a real weapon it would help. Sneaking around the back she slid into the kitchen glancing around before landing on something worth taking. A meat cleaver. Silently she placed it into her backpack, reappearing back into the cafeteria. She only had ten minutes left so she needed to pick up the pace. Sprinting through the cafeteria, her shoulder bumped against a fellow student.

“Shit, sorry.” she looked back to see an Indian girl with a long black braid.

“No, it’s my fault. Should’ve watched where I was going.” the girl responded with a smile.

Violet didn’t know what else to say nor had the time. With a simple nod she turned, refocusing on the task at hand. Soon she made it to the rendezvous spot. Louis and Clementine already stood there, weapons in hand. Louis still had the picket stick while Clementine seemed to be holding what looked to be a toy sword.

“It’s my brother’s sword. Promised him I wouldn’t break it.” Clementine commented. “You ready?”

“Yeah.”

“Then let’s go.”

As they stepped forward the rift cracked open, absorbing the three into its eerie embrace once again. As soon as they had entered the sanctum they were hit with a wave of hesitancy. It was as if the very air itself was soaked with that feeling as it tried to seep inside them.

“I-Is someone there?” a shaky voice called out. Clementine’s eyes searched the room before finding an off-center hole in the floor. The cover was sealed with four iron bars. Crouching down beside it, she noticed a Hispanic boy around her age. His glasses were fogged up by his panicked breathing.

“Hey there. Everything is going to be okay.” Clementine’s hand shook slightly recalling the last time she had said that to someone in their sanctum. “My name is Clementine. Could you tell me yours?”

“José.” the boy's voice cracked. “José Gomez.”

“José. That’s a nice name. There’s two others with me.”

Louis gave a friendly wave as he leaned over. “I’m Louis.”

Violet crouched beside Clementine. “Violet.”

“We’re going to try and get you out of there. Just stay calm okay?” she gave a warm smile which seemed to help him calm down.

“Okay.”

With that she stood up, motioning the others to follow her.

“We need to be quick about this. I think we should search each room and take out all the shadows. It’s our best bet of freeing him.”

“Sounds good.” Louis agreed.

“I-” Violet was cut off when she noticed something out of the corner of her eye. “What the fuck is that?” she pointed over towards it. The others looked over, their own faces shocked by what they saw. A tiny being walked forward, its tentacle arms swaying slightly as it shuffled toward them, a scared expression on its face. On top of its head laid an orange beanie that seemed almost as if it was part of them, its brown hair poking out from the sides. Its body was covered in a blue hoodie and blue pants, four toes sticking out on each foot. Its large eyes and nose twitched as it stared at them.

“Gabu.” it whispered, looking towards Clem with awe.

“Hey there, buddy.” Louis squatted down to his level, rifling through his pockets before revealing a bag of chips. “Wanna snack?” The creature’s eyes widened before it nodded its head, excited for a treat.

“Why are you feeding it?” Violet asked with her arms crossed.

“Aww, come on Vi, it’s cute.” Louis looked over with a happy expression.

“What’s your name?” Clementine asked, leaning down to his level.

“Gabu!” It munched happily on the chips.

“Well, Gabu. Nice to meet you.” Louis replied with a smile. After a few minutes Gabu was done with his snack, staring back at Clementine.

“Well, we need to keep moving.” Clem instructed, but as they started to walk Gabu grabbed onto Clementine’s leg. She looked down at it with an apologetic smile. “Sorry, but we can’t take you  
with us. Wait here and we’ll be back.”

Gabu studied her eyes before giving a small nod and waddling over to the corner. With that the trio continued into the first room.

When they opened the door they nearly jumped out of their skins when they noticed all the statues staring at them.

“I swear each sanctum just gets more creepy.” Violet mumbled, looking at the nearest statue.

“No kidding,” Louis stood by her.

“This must be some sort of room based on historical leaders.” Clementine added, a hand placed on her chin. “The one in front of you is General Robert E Lee.” The statue in front of them  
displayed a sword by his side, his expression serious as he stared off.

“How do you know that?” Violet looked back towards her.

“My dad’s a history professor. He actually works at Ericson.” Clementine stated, a proud smile on her face.

“Wow! Add that to the list of awesome things about you!” Louis flashed a smile in her direction.

Violet rolled her eyes. “Let’s just find the shadows.”

The three quickly went back to work, looking around at the many many statues that filled the room, all of which Clementine knew.

“That one looks like he just smelled his own fart.” Violet commented with a smirk.

Louis laughed.“He totally does. Looks like it was a bad one too!”

Clementine couldn’t help but laugh at her friend's impression of Confucius. She was about to speak when all of a sudden two of the statues fell over covered in black sludge before turning into their shadow forms. Without a second though she ran forward, tearing off her glove and smacking her hand against her heart.

“Persona!” her voice commanded to bring forth Ma’at. Her imposing presence filled the air as the ostrich feather spun on the scale. A quick gesture of her hand and the two shadows were cut to pieces by the powerful wind attack. Violet didn’t even have time to summon her own Persona before it was over. Louis whistled.

“I don’t think I’ll ever get used to how badass that power is.”

Clementine’s face brightened. “It looks like there were only two in here. Let’s move on to the next room.” Violet and Louis nodded in agreement. Within minutes they were in the next room which looked to be a science lab. Beakers filled the table in the room. Different mixtures bubbling as steam rose from them. Clementine made her way over to one of the beakers, leaning over to sniff the contents. Pulling back her head sharply she let out a sound that was akin to a bizarre squeak. Louis and Violet looked over at her with confused smiles.

“What? It was for… science.” her voice was defensive as she looked back to her friends who didn’t look convinced. A weird bubbling came from three of the beakers. A disturbing amount of black gunk oozed from them, forming three shadows who lunged immediately at Clem.

“Shit!” Violet sprinted forward, pulling off her glove and pounding her hand against her heart.

“Persona!” her voice cracked. La Guillotine levitated behind her, the young girl kicking her feet with a carefree expression. Before Violet could issue a command a shadow’s claws sliced her arm, blood dripping from it at a steady pace.

“Vi!” Louis cried out, running forward and hitting the shadow with a vicious swing. It stumbled backwards but he wasn’t finished. He didn’t stop swinging until it fell down to the ground into nothingness. Violet followed up with an attack from her Persona, cutting the other two with ease.

“Violet!” Clementine ran forward. “Are you okay?”

“I’m fine.”

“Like hell you are.” Louis’ face was filled with concern. “We need to-”

“Keep moving. Or else José might not make it.” Violet shot back. The two looked at her, still unsure, but decided to push forward. When they entered the center room they saw a hand shoot out from the bars.

“Hey, whatever you’re doing is working. Two of the bars disappeared, but I’m still stuck.” José’s voice called out to them.

“Don’t worry. We're on it.” Louis replied before slamming open the next door. The room they entered looked to be that of a madman. Mathematical formulas were scrawled all over the walls, overlapping each other and making some completely unreadable.

“It just had to be math.” Louis hoped his comment would lighten up the mood. Before either could react through, the formulas spilled out onto the floor. Shadows forming from them. Violet swiftly cut one down, wincing when pain shot up her arm. Louis followed close behind taking out another one before Clementine finished off the last one with her sword. The group looked at each other, letting out a sigh of relief. Only one door left. A library was the last room, books stacked all the way to the sky. The shadows appeared immediately, their bodies forming from the many books.

“Persona!” Clementine yelled, directing Ma’at who took them out easily.Without a word the trio ran back to the center room. Louis slid down, reaching his hand out to help José. When suddenly out of the walls fell two more shadows in a shape that was all too familiar to them.

“That’s them.” José’s voice trembled, pulling himself up with Louis’ help. “They were the ones who took me!”  
Clementine and Violet looked at each other, knowing exactly what needed to be done. Summoning their Personas they started their attacks. The shadows were not easy to defeat, dodging some of their attacks with ease. Luckily Clem’s Garu attack landed, throwing them off balance before La Guillotine sliced through them.

“He’s safe!” Louis called to them. The two returned to his side. All three of them felt a rush of relief. They had saved him.

“T-Thank you.” José whispered.

“I’m glad you’re safe.”

“When those men took me to that bizarre place, I thought it was over. Then when I got moved again, I..” his voice faltered.

“Don’t worry. You’re going to be safe. We’re gonna send help.” Clementine placed a hand on his shoulder, giving a reassuring smile. José gave a shy nod before his body turned into a ball of light. Slowly the sanctum around them faded away, leaving them back in the real world by Building N. Clementine’s body swayed slightly as her mind was overloaded with information from José. The name of the warehouse appeared in her mind as well as some convoluted instructions he had overheard his captors speak of.

“Clem, you okay?’ Violet asked with concern, her arm slick with blood.

“That doesn’t matter right now. We need to get you some help.” Clementine replied, her own face etched with worry.

“I’ll help her. You send the anonymous tip.” Louis helped Violet out, guiding her slowly to his car.

“I’m fine.”

“Shut up, Violet.” Louis mumbled, opening the car door for her. Sliding into his seat, he paused for a minute. “I’m sorry. I shouldn’t have said those things to you.”

Violet looked over towards him.

“I’m sorry too.”

The two friends looked at each other, small smiles on their faces. With that Louis started the car driving towards the hospital.

A few days had passed since the news broadcasted that José Gomez had been rescued and was recovering. The three of them had been so happy by the news that they decided to celebrate their success by grabbing some food. Violet and Clementine arrived at their usual meeting spot on time, but Louis was nowhere to be seen. Violet and Clementine stood by the fountain, unsure why he was so late. Then they noticed a college student running up to them, his mullet blowing in the wind as he sprinted towards them.

“You have to help!” his voice was shaky, his breathing uneven. An expression of fear on his face which sported a black eye. “Louis has been taken!”


	8. The Outcome of Their Long Endeavor

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Clementine and Violet rush to try and save Louis who is stuck facing his worst fears in the form of his construct.

Clementine felt her heart stop at the news. She couldn’t believe what she was hearing. Was Louis really taken? She looked over at Violet who seemed to be just as shocked and concerned as she was. "Tell us everything.” Clementine looked towards the college student.

“Well, I was walking with him to the cafeteria when we heard a cry for help that only lasted for a second. So we decided to check it out and that’s when we saw The Saint John Killers. The ones on the news.” his voice continued to shake as he told the story. “They were in the middle of grabbing someone and before I knew it Louis had jumped forward only to get taken himself. I tried to help, but…” his voice trailed off. It was obvious what had happened. He had gotten that black eye from trying to get to Louis. 

“But why did you come to us?” Clementine asked, her hands shaking. Her mind was still processing the news.

“Who are you anyway?” Violet looked at him with some suspicion.

“I’m Marlon. I’ve known Louis for... shit, I don’t know, more than ten years now. I came to you guys because Louis told me to. It was the last thing he said before they got away.”

“Fuck.” Violet whispered, her gaze on the ground.

“What should we do?” Marlon asked in a panic.

“Call the sheriff’s department. Tell them what happened. They’ll know what to do.” Clementine instructed. Marlon gave a quick nod before walking away to make the phone call. 

“Clem-” Violet started, but was soon cut off when she saw the worry on her friend’s face. 

“We can’t leave it up to the sheriff.” Clementine stated, trying to regain some level of calm. “If what Santiago said was true in his sanctum about the place the brothers first took him, it means that Louis is in a place that they won’t be able to find.”

Violet felt her heart drop.“Then how the fuck is Louis going to…” her voice faded out, not wanting to finish the sentence. How was he going to make it?

“When we left the sanctum, somehow I got whatever memory Santiago had of his captors talking about the location.” Clementine’s words caused Violet’s eyes to shoot up. “But it’s so convoluted that there’s no way I could communicate it clearly enough for the sheriff’s men to use it to find Louis.” 

“Then why don’t we go? If it's in your mind, then we can find it.” Violet argued, desperately searching for any plan. Clementine placed her hand on her chin. It was a long shot, but it was their best bet. Maybe if they followed the steps it would lead them to him. 

“It’s the only chance he’s got!” Violet added, wincing when she moved her arm too suddenly. 

“Alright, let’s go.” Clementine was still worried about Violet’s arm, but she knew if she said anything Vi would just brush it off. 

“I’ve got a truck. We can take that. Just gotta grab my keys.” Violet led the way back to her dorm room, slipping in and coming right back out after grabbing a few items. Soon the two of them stood in front of a dark blue pickup truck. It was a bit beat-up and seemed to be somewhat old, but it ran just fine when Violet turned the key into the ignition. It took them a while to find the hidden location. Pulling up near the docks, they weaved their way through some alleyways before finding a red door. Looking around, Clementine noticed a hidden lever that was concealed by some nearby pipes. With a loud groan the red door opened and the two snuck inside, hiding behind a crate when they got in after closing the door behind them. 

Looking around the room, they noticed an eerie blue light piercing through the rift. It stood in a corner with some old pipes and some rope and chains. This must’ve been where they kept their victims. Clementine and Violet looked at each other, giving a quick confirmation before tiptoeing their way over to the rift. It shot up, enveloping them. Within seconds they were inside. A song was playing in the background though it seemed to be missing a few notes, its distorted tune ruining the original song. 

“Is this Louis’ sanctum?” Violet questioned as her eyes fell to the floor, noticing that they were standing on giant piano keys.

“It must be.” Clementine replied. She looked out beyond the stage they stood on to see an empty auditorium. Rows and rows of seats empty, longing for an audience that would never arrive. The two of them felt a sinking feeling inside them. Louis was nowhere to be seen. Were they too late?

“Gabu?” The creature popped its head out from behind one of the seats. Its eyes widened when it recognized the two girls. Quickly sprinting up to the stage, it ran towards Clementine’s leg hugging it. “Gabu!”

“Hey, it’s that weird creature.” Violet noted with her arms crossed.

“Hey, Gabu!” Clementine looked down at it with a smile. “You wouldn’t happen to know where Louis is, would you?”

Gabu nodded excitedly, pulling on her pant leg with one tentacle while pointing to the curtains that led to the backstage with the other. Violet walked forward, pulling back the curtain to reveal a corridor that was all too familiar to them. If this was here, that meant that Louis was in his sanctum sanctorum. 

“Shit.” Violet mumbled before running down the corridor.

“Thanks, Gabu. You stay here. We’ll be right back.” Clementine called out as she tried to catch up to Violet. Soon the two of them stood in front of the door. All of the sudden they were hit with a wave of an emotion they couldn’t quite place. It felt as though they were empty inside. An neverending feeling that seemed to consume them. Clementine looked towards the door. If this was Louis’ sanctum, it had to be tied to his emotions so... _This is what he’s feeling right now?_ She made eye contact with Violet who seemed to have come to the same conclusion. The two friends sat beside each other with nothing to do but hope that Louis would be okay. 

Louis looked around the room. It was pretty barren with only a table and two chairs. It looked like something out of an old crime show he’d watched. An interrogation room. It took him a minute before he noticed that he wasn’t alone. Before him stood a picture perfect version of himself. It gave a grin when they locked eyes. 

“Well, Lou. It seems like I no longer have to wait.” his eyes twitched for a second. He slowly strode forward. 

“Who-”

“Am I?” the construct laughed. “I am you and you are me.” He leaned dramatically against the wall.

“It’s sad though, isn’t it? To think any minute now your life is gonna end. Your friends never bothered to come for you.” 

“My life?” Louis asked, confused by everything that was going on.

“Well, yeah. Come on, you were taken by the Saint Johns Killers. You’re toast.” the construct snorted at its own words. Its eyes turned towards Louis. “But it gets you thinking, doesn’t it? The fact that all this time you’ve been a facade. No one really knows the real you.”

Louis backed away slightly. “What are you talking about?”

“Well, I mean... think about it. Have you ever told anyone about your greatest accomplishment?” The construct gave a sickening grin. “Causing your parents’ divorce. Oh it was beautiful, wasn’t it? 

‘You get to be happy or you get to be rich. You don’t get to be both.’ ” The construct’s voice had changed to that of ten year old Louis. Louis felt his heart stop at those words, his back completely up against the wall. 

Violet stood up again, staring at the door. There had to be some way to open it, right? She couldn’t just leave Louis in there. Who knew if he was still alive anyway. Without a word she took out her meat cleaver, hitting the door with a hard slash.

Clementine scrambled up to her feet.“What the fuck, Vi?”

“We can’t just sit around!” her voice was tight. “You’ve felt it too. This emptiness inside you. It has to belong to Louis.” She swung her meat cleaver again, hissing when a wave of pain swept through her arm. “If that’s how he’s feeling, then…”

Clementine looked at her friend with a sympathetic smile. Vi wanted to help him. She understood that. If she could break down the door to get to her friend she would but she also knew that wasn't possible. Walking forward, she placed a gentle hand on her shoulder. “We just have to believe in Louis. He believed in us when we went through our sanctum sanctorum. We should do the same.”

Violet’s arm relaxed. Giving a small nod she sat down, wrapping her arms around her knees. Clementine took a spot beside her. _Louis has got this. I know he does._

The construct voice’s reverted back to normal.“I guess you can’t tell them though. Because if you did they’d realize that this Louis you pretend to be in front of them is a sham. You’re not friendly or kind. You’re selfish and manipulative.”

“Stop it.” Louis pleaded. His legs collapsed underneath him as he tried to block out the words by covering his ears.

The construct looked down at him with a mock sad smile. “Sorry. Did I hit a nerve? Usually that means that there’s truth in those words though, doesn’t it? Your friends never really did care about you.”

Covering his ears seemed to accomplish nothing as the words still cut deep into Louis’ heart. Suddenly a contract appeared by his feet, a white quill beside it. Louis looked down, his mind too overwhelmed to allow his body to move. 

“Honestly, you really are pathetic. So weak that you can’t even do what needs to be done.” the construct motioned to the contract. “If you were strong you could sign it. Then this would all be over.” 

Louis’ gaze fixated on the piece of paper. _It would all be over?_ The words caused his train of thought to stop. _If it was all over, then I wouldn’t see Clem or Vi again._ His mind was filled with thoughts about them. Memories of their times in the different sanctums where they helped each other. Protected one another. They had only known each other for a short amount of time, but they trusted each other with their lives. They proved that constantly by jumping back into the sanctums. 

“No.” his voice cracked as he willed his body to stand up. Taking a shaky step forward, his eyes focused on the construct’s. 

“They do care. Somehow I know that they’re waiting for me. That they came for me. They believe in me.” His eyes hardened with resolve. “So I’m going to believe in myself too!”

The imposter fell backwards. “No. They don’t care.” It hissed, clutching its chest. A white orb slowly consumed their chest, causing them to crack until they burst. Leaving behind only a few specks of dust in their place. Louis let out a sigh of relief before intense pain filled his chest. He desperately clutched at his chest. Saliva spilled from his mouth as he tried to deal with the pain. Soon another pain joined in. His hand lit on fire which danced around the back of his hand creating a sigil. Louis cried out in pain and he tried to hold back tears until it stopped. Looking over at his hand, his whole body shook.

“Ah! I see you’ve awakened.” A calming voice caused Louis to glance up. There in front of him stood a piano which played a lovely piece of music. Golden music notes spun around the piano as a pair of white gloves played the keys. “I’m glad. I am Liszt.” 

“Louis.” he replied with a nervous smile. This was a lot to take in. No wonder Violet and Clementine looked exhausted after their Persona awakenings.

I am thou, thou art I.   
By casting away the falsehoods placed within your heart and opening your eyes to the truth,  
I have come from the depths of your soul  
to help in your pursuit of justice. 

Liszt dramatically swept his fingers along the piano before turning into a ball of light and disappearing into Louis’ heart. Before he could even process all that had happened the door swung open. His eyes turned toward the door. It was hacked to pieces. Did Violet do all that?

“Louis!” Clementine yelled, running forward and wrapping her arms around him. Violet quickly joined in, rushing forward and joining the hug a bit too fast which caused the trio to take a few steps back. Louis wrapped his arms around his two friends, feeling himself melt into the hug for a moment before he pulled away. 

“You guys came for me!” he looked at them with a huge smile. Violet crossed her arms.

“Of course we did, you dumbass.”

“Yeah. The team isn’t complete without you.” Clementine smiled brightly. 

“Well, now the team is really complete!” Louis dramatically displayed the fingerless glove that was now on his hand. 

“You got a Persona?” Violet asked. 

“Yeah.” He ran a hand through his dreadlocks. “It’s pretty crazy. Who would’ve thought I could get one too?”

Clementine was about to speak when James’ voice rang through her head. 

_I am thou, thou art I  
Thous hast acquired a new bond   
It shall become the voice of justice   
That soothes thine anguish from oppression_

_With the birth of the Lovers Persona,  
One of sociability and cheerfulness   
I have obtained the tongue of truth   
That shall lead to balance and new power_

She looked over at Louis who was still talking to Violet, excitement in his eyes due to his new powers. A huge smile played across his lips. _The Lovers Persona, huh? That makes sense._

All of a sudden the room around them started to fade away until they were back in the hidden room by the pipes. _We should escape while there’s still time._  
Clementine’s eyes were drawn, however, to another rift that stood on the opposite side of the room. A red light shone from it. The whispers that escaped it sent a chill down her spine.

“What the fuck.” Louis whispered, feeling the hairs rise on the back of his neck. 

Violet looked at the rift, her body slightly trembling. “This one is different.” 

Clementine studied it, trying to decide what the best course of action would be. She looked back at her team. Violet was still injured and Louis had just awoken his persona so he would be running on adrenaline. Not to mention the fact that she didn’t have her sword and Louis didn’t have his weapon. It was likely the worst condition that they’d been in before entering a rift. But something drew her to this rift. Her gut feeling was that this was their one chance to enter it. If they refused to take it, the opportunity would be lost forever.

“I think we should enter.” Clementine stated. Her friends’ eyes shot up in surprise. “I think it may be linked to the killers and I’m not sure if it will be here again if we wait. But...” she looked at them with a reassuring smile. “Only if we all agree to go. I don’t want to force you guys to do something that you don’t want to.”

Violet’s eyes looked down at the floor while Louis looked over to the side. “I’m in.” Violet replied. Louis looked over at her, studying her determined eyes. 

“Same here.” He said before walking forward towards Clementine. “If there’s a chance it has something to do with those assholes, then we’ve gotta act.” 

Clementine smiled at those words. Motioning them to follow, she stepped forward. The rift easily absorbed them in mere seconds. 

When they had arrived it was clear that they had never dealt with anything like this before. It looked like the inside of a sanctum, except this one seemed twisted. A light red mist curled around their feet, the smell of blood piercing their noses. Overwhelming them to the point that it stung. A palpable sense of bloodlust filled the air, causing the trio to shiver. Wherever they were, it was clear that this sanctum was tainted. 

“What the shit.” Louis' words made the others turn to see what he was talking about. The rift hadn’t disappeared like it did all the other times. Instead this time it stood there unchanged. Louis reached his hand forward only for it to be repelled by a barrier. 

“Looks like we’re stuck.” Violet let out a sigh.

“Seems that way.” Clementine looked back, noticing only a single hallway leaving the room. “We’ll have to go down that way.”

Violet and Louis looked back at her and nodded. It seemed like an ordinary hallway until they stepped inside. Their stomachs twisted at the sight. Throughout the hallway on both sides hung body bags. It wasn’t clear what was inside of them, but whatever it was their contents were bleeding. Droplets of blood dripped down to the floor from some of the bags. It soon became clear that the only way to move forward was to push through the body bags. So reluctantly they did, each of them trying not to get overwhelmed by the motion of moving them. The hallway had limited space, causing them to move in a single file line. Louis tried not to gag as his hands slid around one of the bags, opening the way for the others. 

“How many body bags are there?” He asked when suddenly one started to move. 

“Holy shit!” Violet moved forward, standing in front of the others. The bag began to squirm, squelching sounds coming from it as it struggled. Suddenly the contents burst out, revealing a shadow. It attacked Violet right away. She blocked the attack with her meat cleaver. It was lucky that she had decided to step in front as neither Louis or Clem had their weapons. But their luck ran out quickly as another bag fell to the ground, red ooze exploding from it and forming another shadow. Louis took off his glove and whacked his hand over his heart.

“Persona!” he cried out. A flash of light appeared before his persona stood behind him. A soft melody played as the notes danced around. “Zio!” Louis yelled with a flick of his wrist. Liszt responded immediately. Playing an even faster melody, the notes gathered around, lifting up higher and higher. Then raising his hands, Liszt slammed them against the keys. A flash of light appeared before thunder struck the shadow, burning it to a crisp. Louis gave a proud smile. 

“Not bad, huh?” 

“I’ve seen better.” Violet gave a smirk over to her friend, cutting down the foe in front of her. They continued on, slowly making their way down the hall. Each person used their powers to help keep the others safe. After numerous fights they had reached the end of the hallway which opened up into a huge room. 

The floor had a thin layer of blood on it. A table with a bloody sink stood to the right side of the entrance, a knife embedded in. To the left was a saw that looked like it had been used recently, blood caked on it. Next to it on the wall hung a poster similar to one found in a slaughterhouse. Except instead of a diagram of different cuts you could get from an animal, it was a diagram of a human. The notes instructed on the most satisfying places and ways to cut. 

Violet’s back hit the wall, drawing the others’ attention. Their eyes followed hers until they saw what she was looking at. There on the opposite wall were multiple missing people posters, each of them splattered with blood. Amelia’s face was up there as well. Clementine felt her stomach tighten, a nauseated feeling overtaking her. Louis balled up his fists, his face twisted in anger as his knuckles grew paler and paler. Violet’s face fell before she looked back up, her eyes hardening. This place was fucked up. 

_What kind of a fucked up mind would have a sanctum like this?_

“Andy, have you ever seen such rude guests?” The voice caused the trio to look over, noticing two figures standing before them. They recognized them: the Saint John Killers. They had seen their shadow form in the other sanctums, but here they were standing before them looking normal. This was their sanctum after all.

“No, Danny, I haven’t. Who enters someone else’s home without notice?” The two of them looked so similar. Perhaps they were brothers?

“Fuck you.” Violet hissed, giving the two of them a death glare.

Andy tsked. “Now that’s not polite.”

“You don’t deserve politeness after what you’ve done.” Louis snapped. Danny looked at them with disdain.

“What gives you the right to judge us?”

“Yeah. After all, we’re just doing what all humans do. We do things that make us feel alive.”

“You’re killing innocent people!” Clementine yelled, stepping forward. 

“We go after people that nobody would miss.” Andy stated matter of factly.

“Those people had loved ones. Families that missed them. You had no right to take them away!” Clementine’s words were filled with venom.

“What about our rights? We deserve to feel alive.” Andy stared at Clementine, studying her as if she was an animal. Louis and Violet instinctevely walked forward, standing by their leader. Their eyes laser focused on the foes in front of them, ready to defend Clementine if need be. “That appetite, what I crave, never went away. Seeing them try to escape...” Danny gave a sickening smile. “Only to see them fall into our trap. There’s no rush like it.” His voice was unsettlingly calm. 

Clementine stared in disbelief _How could he talk about that so casually?_

“You’re fucking psychotic!” Violet spat.

“You’re not human.. You’re monsters.” Louis glared at them. His heart twisted with rage. 

“Don’t think for a second we’re going to let you continue in your fucked up ways!” Clementine shot her arm out accusingly.

The two killers' eyes widened at those words. Clearly that had hit some nerve. But then they simply shrugged. 

“It’s such a shame. Everything would’ve turned out okay for you folks if you didn’t stick your nose in our goddamn business.” Andy shook his head sadly before looking up with a twisted smile.

“I haven’t gotten to use this today.” Danny whispered, caressing his knife. “But now it looks like I won’t have to wait.”

The tension in the room grew when all of the sudden the two killers clashed together, merging into a united form. Their faces were combined together to make one face that looked uneven, malformed, their features clashing against one another. It was a disturbing face, but it didn’t end there. One of their hands had been replaced with a bloody saw while the other was a rusty meat hook. The apron covering their chest was splattered with blood. Clementine had to act quickly. They needed to defeat them no matter what. Before she could instruct her team though the killers lunged forward, swiping the meat hook towards Violet. She barely dodged it in time, the meat hook passing inches above her nose. 

“Vi!” Louis called out.

“I’m fine!” Violet took out her meat cleaver when a foot appeared out of nowhere, connecting with her stomach. She let out a pained groan, her body flying backwards.

“Persona!” Louis and Clementine yelled at the same time. Their cries were answered immediately as Ma’at and Liszt stood behind them. Clementine sent wave after wave of Garu, the wind slicing against the killers’ skin. Their blood slowly seeped out of their body from multiple wounds. Dodging the saw, Clementine attacked again only for it to be blocked, an elbow smashing against her shoulder. Louis quickly sent support as thunder crashed around them. Some bolts connected against the meat hook, sending jolts up into and through the killers’ body.   
Violet stood back up. Sprinting forward, she ripped off her glove.“Persona!” her voice rang out. La Guillotine appeared behind her. Jumping right into the action, the guillotine fell with each slice that landed. The trio continued to attack, each one blocking the enemy’s attacks that would’ve connected and harmed one of their friends. It was a tiring fight, lasting for far longer than they had anticipated. They struggled to catch their breath as their foe continued attack after attack. 

_How many hits can this thing take?_ Clementine backstepped, commanding Ma’at to go on the offense once again. It seemed to be nearly impossible to win until Louis called down his largest rain of thunder yet, causing the killers’ body to vibrate as the jolts coursed through it. Taking the opportunity, Clem and Violet attacked, making their foe collapse. The form faded, revealing the two killers again. They gave one last pitiful attempt to rise and attack once more before falling unconscious and disappearing. The room started to crumble, the ceiling collapsing on top of them. The pieces that fell completely crushed the slaughterhouse table, proving themselves to be very real.

“We gotta run!” Clementine yelled as the two quickly followed her. _Please be open. Please be open._ The group soon reached the rift. _Here goes nothing._ Clementine desperately reached out her hand toward the rift. It opened. Louis, Violet and Clementine fell face forward through the rift, landing on top of each other on the ground beside the docks. Clementine’s mind spun, retaining the location of the killers. She looked around. They had made it back safely. But it wasn’t over. Holding each other up, they slipped out of the room and toward Violet’s truck. The truck roared to life and they were off. Violet let out a hiss of pain as she turned the corner, driving her friends back to Ericson. 

“I know where the Saint John Killers are.” Clementine revealed.

“How?” Louis looked over in confusion. 

“It entered my mind the same way the victims’ locations did upon exiting their sanctums. It seems we gained it by defeating them in that sanctum.”

“We should report it now.” Violet glanced over quickly before returning her attention to the road. 

Soon the trio was back on campus. With a few button presses and a short conversation, they had left an anonymous tip. 

The three looked back and forth between each other, praying that this would work and the killers would finally be stopped once and for all.


	9. A Well Earned Celebration

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The trio celebrates their victory at the news of the Saint John Killers being arrested.

Clementine felt her eyes flutter open. Lifting herself up, she looked around the room. Blinking her eyes to get the drowsiness out of them. When she was finally fully awake she got out of bed, changing into her outfit for the day. Pulling her arms through her denim jacket, she shuffled down the stairs. 

“Good morning!” Lee’s warm voice called from behind the kitchen counter. 

AJ also said good morning or at least that what Clementine figured he had said. With his mouth full of breakfast it was hard to tell.

“AJ, don’t talk with your mouth full.” Lee scolded while frying up the rest of the bacon. He looked over to Clementine who had slid into a chair at the dining table. 

“You hungry?”

“Starving.” Clementine replied with a smile.

“Good, because I made a lot today. There’s eggs, bacon, toast and orange juice.” He walked over and placed a plate in front of her.

“Thanks.” She was about to dig in when the sound of the news on the TV stopped her. A news reporter stood outside of a warehouse that Clem quickly recognized. The reporter's short brown hair blew slightly in the wind as she told the news. Lee seemed to be paying closer attention to the news than usual.

“Yesterday, the sheriff’s department got an anonymous tip that told them the location rumored to be where the Saint John Killers had been hiding out. When they went to investigate they found the two killers standing in the warehouse seemingly in a daze. When-” she paused when she noticed the Sheriff walking by, his gray mustache standing out on his face. 

“Excuse me, Sheriff. Do you have a minute to talk?”

The sheriff stopped in his tracks, a smile appearing on his face as he turned to respond. “Please, call me Kenny.” 

“Alright, Kenny. Do you think that it is true that these are the rumoured killers?”

“Yes. When we looked in the warehouse not only did we find them, but also some items that looked to be the murder weapons.” The rest of the conversation passed over Clementine’s head. She couldn't believe it. They had done it. The serial killers had been caught. 

“Your breakfast is getting cold.” AJ’s words snapped her back into reality.

“Oh, right, thanks.” She picked up her fork before digging into her food. It was delicious; sometimes she couldn’t believe how good of a cook Lee was. Her phone suddenly buzzed against the table. She didn’t even have to check to know who it was from. The others must have just seen the news as well. 

“Clem.” she looked towards her brother. “Can we watch the new Disco Broccoli episode tonight?”

She looked at him with a warm smile. “Sure. I can’t wait.”

AJ smiled back, moving his arms back and forth in his happy dance. She looked at the clock by the fridge. She needed to get a move on. Her first class was going to start soon. Saying her goodbyes, she left her house. An overwhelming feeling of happiness coursed throughout her body. She couldn't wait to see the others. 

It was a little while later in the day that she made her way over to the fountain where Louis and Violet stood, smiling when they noticed her. As soon as she caught up to them they started to make their way across campus to get to their class. 

“Did you see the news?” Louis started the much anticipated conversation. A huge grin was on his face as he looked over at the two of them. Violet nodded in response, a small smile on her lips. 

“I can't believe it actually worked. Those assholes are finally going to be where they belong.”

“It really is crazy how everything worked out.” Clementine’s gaze looked up at the clear blue sky.

“Well, I say that we should go out and celebrate!” Louis suggested.

“Where?” Violet looked over at him while sidestepping a student that was walking by. 

“Tony’s Pizzas. They have these huge pizzas and if you can finish the entire pizza you get it for free.” 

Violet seemed interested. “Alright.”

“Oh, can we not do it today though? I promised my little brother that I’d hang out with him.” Clementine looked over with an apologetic smile. Louis waved a hand dramatically.

“Well, we can’t have you breaking a promise like that. How does tomorrow sound?”

“Works for me.” Clementine responded.

“Same.” Violet added.

“Then it’s settled! Tomorrow we will meet in our usual spot then make our way to the pizza feast that awaits us.” With that the trio’s conversation changed to other topics as they continued their walk to class.

“Here we are!” Louis declared while his hand held the door open for them. The three of them sat down in a booth near the corner. Each of them stared at the menu set before them. There were over 21 different pizza combinations to choose from. It was a bit overwhelming. It took them a while to decide, but they landed on a classic pepperoni pizza. With their order placed, their attention focused back on conversation topics. Before they knew it the pizza had arrived. Its massive base covered nearly the entire table.

“Holy shit.” Violet whispered, staring at the pizza with disbelief. 

“I’m not sure we can finish this.” Clementine stated, looking at the sheer volume of one of the slices.

“Come on, guys. We got this!” Louis exclaimed, snatching up his first slice and beginning the long process of devouring it. Violet soon followed suit, stuffing the slice in her mouth. The trio fought valiantly against the pizza, but no matter how much they ate it seemed like it didn’t make a dent.   
Clementine leaned back, letting out a long groan which quickly turned into loud burps.

Louis laughed before groaning himself, clutching his side. His head laid against the table.“We couldn’t defeat the pizza.” 

“Of course we couldn’t. That thing is massive! We’d need a dozen people if we wanted to finish it.” Violet mumbled, her own face on the table. 

Clementine looked over at her two friends. A warm feeling welled up inside of her. She was glad that they were safe. They had been through so much with this crazy mess they were thrown into. It honestly was a miracle that they had survived it. Her eyes fell on her friends’ injuries. Violet’s stitches on her arm peeked out from under her t-shirt. While Louis’ bruises were not to be seen, they were still there. Clementine unconsciously touched her side and tried to hide her wince when she reached her own set of bruises.

“It’s not a bad way to celebrate. Who would’ve thought that three random college students would take down a pair of serial killers.” Louis lifted up his head, a proud smile on his face. 

“It’s fucking crazy,” Violet’s eyes met Louis’. “All of this stuff. The personas, the sanctums...” She leaned back. “But I’m glad.”

“Yeah, it’s insane when you think about it, but thanks to all of it we were able to help people and stop those psychotic assholes.” Louis’ smile grew. “It felt pretty great, being a hero.”

“It was pretty cool.” Clementine added. “But I’m glad it’s done.” 

Violet nodded in agreement. A waitress walked by, placing the check on the table. All eyes fell upon it until Louis raised up his hand. “I got this one.” He placed the amount owed and a generous tip before sliding out of the booth. Violet and Clementine got up as well.

“So, you two ready for the philosophy test next week?” Clementine asked, opening the door for them.

“If you mean ready to bomb it, then yes.” Louis walked out the door.

Violet let out an annoyed groan. “Don’t remind me.”

Clementine let out a small laugh. She was happy that this crazy experience was now over, that she could focus on normal life once again and enjoy the company that came with it.


	10. A Panicked Interaction

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The trio is enjoying the normalcy of their lives when a certain person makes them ponder whether their days as heroes are truly over.

“All I’m saying is that it’s fair to keep challenging you to Dance Dance Revolution if you keep dragging me into Soul Calibur matches.” Louis glanced over at Violet with a playful smile. Violet looked away.

“Whatever.”

Clementine looked up at the sky. It sure was a nice day out today. Every day felt like a gift after they had taken down the Saint John Killers.

“Well are you excited to see the new and improved Louis? I’m sure you’ll be shocked when you see how much my skeeball skills have improved.” he declared, turning around while walking backwards to chat while keeping up.

“So you’ll get more than ten points?” Violet asked with a smirk.

Louis was about to respond when all of the sudden his back hit someone. She fell over, her papers and books falling to the floor. “Oh, shit. I’m so sorry!” Louis turned around kneeling down to help her with the mess he had caused. 

“It’s okay. I wasn’t paying attention either.” The girl looked up at him with a smile, her ginger hair slicked back, a single strand falling which she quickly pushed back.

Louis soon had all the papers in his hands, he looked over with an apologetic smile, his dreadlocks swaying back and forth. 

Clementine stood frozen. She didn’t know why she didn’t go over and offer her help. Her mind seemed focused on Louis for some reason. Her emotions reacted to the scene playing out in front of her in a way she wasn’t expecting. Was she jealous? ...Did she like Louis?

Violet glanced over at Clementine before looking towards Louis. It didn’t take a genius to see what was happening. Clementine clearly was into him. Violet felt her heart ache. _So I really didn’t stand a chance, did I? I don’t know what I expected._

The two looked on as Louis and the girl stood up.

“Here you go. Sorry again.” he offered back the papers.

“Don’t worry about it.” the girl took the papers, tucking them behind the books in her hands.

“I’m Louis.” 

“Brody. It was nice to meet you.”

“Yeah, it was nice to meet you too!” Louis called out, giving a friendly wave. 

“Let’s go. We're going to be late.” Violet mumbled, pushing past Louis who looked a bit confused by her action. 

“Wait up, Vi!” he ran forward to catch up to her and soon Clementine joined them as well.

The next few days were similar to the rest. Each day the trio would walk together to different classes, meet up for lunch and then hang out after their classes were done. It was pleasant spending each day enjoying each other's company and the little surprises each day brought.

“I can’t read another page of this book.” Violet grumbled, tossing the book across the table before crossing her arms.

Louis placed down his own copy of _Nicomachean Ethics._ “I know what you mean. After a few paragraphs it just all begins to melt together.”

“We just need to get through one more chapter and then we’re done for the week.” Clementine hoped her words would motivate her friends, but it seemed to be a lost cause. Louis seemed to stare off into space, his face expressionless. Violet was no better, staring up at the sky before glancing over to her friends. Her eyes widened for some reason.

“It’s that girl.” She pointed behind them causing them to turn and see Brody leaving Building C. She seemed in distress though. She walked forward quickly, leaning against a tree. Even from this far away it was clear that she was trying to calm herself down. Her chest slowly rising and failing as she tried to recenter herself. Her lips were repeating some sort of phrase over and over again.

“We should help.” Clementine suggested, standing up and immediately making her way over. The other two were right behind her. When she got closer to Brody she could see that she was trembling.

“This can’t be…. Fuck, just, Fuck!” She paced back and forth. “It’s okay, Brody…. Just breathe.. It’s… C’mon. C’mon.”

Clementine slowly walked forward and reached out a hand.“Hey. It’s going to be-” her sentence was cut off however when suddenly a rift opened in front of them. Cracks started to form, creating an opening before swallowing all four of them into its depth. It was a bit of a dizzying experience being dragged into a sanctum again. Clementine back stepped, losing her balance. Louis’ fast reflexes kicked in, catching her before she fell.

“Hey, you okay?” he asked with concern.

“Yeah. Where’s Brody?”

“I don’t know.” Violet replied walking towards a single brass door. “But I bet she probably went this way.”Violet twisted open the door, leading the three forward up a winding staircase. It took them a while to reach the top. When they did they were surprised to see what was inside. They were standing on a beach. Pieces of sand slowly fell from the sky, landing all around them. Looking around it seemed that they were surrounded by a transparent glass orb. The clear blue water was now a raging dangerous mass, the water forming in giant waves that crashed viciously against the nearby rocks and sand. Clementine’s eyes searched around the area hoping to see Brody, but she was nowhere to be seen. The others joined in the search, wandering the sands of the beach before Louis called out to them.

“Guys! A corridor opened up!” his voice was filled with concern. Violet and Clementine looked towards each other. Without a second thought all three sprinted down the hall, stopping when they came across an all too familiar door. 

“Fuck.” Violet whispered backing away when she was hit by a wave of anxiety. She started to pace back and forth, her hand trembling slightly. Her breathing was shaky. 

“Vi.” Louis tried to help her, but he wasn’t doing much better. It felt as though his very core was being twisted around a restlessness overtaking his body. His breathing was getting more and more irregular. 

“We..” Clementine paused, feeling the overwhelming anxiety trying to take over. “We need to focus on our breathing.” The other two nodded, trying their best to follow her breathing pattern. Clementine’s gaze fell upon the door. _This must be how Brody is feeling. This feeling of anxiety…_ She looked towards her friends who were struggling to calm down. _It’s so strong. Brody, please get through this._

Brody could feel her head pounding as she struggled to breath. Where the hell was she? She had just left a class early to try and stop her anxiety from getting any worse, then all of the sudden she was here. Hoping that the corridor had led to an exit she’d followed it, but now she was in here, a bare room with only a table and two chairs in it. 

“You showed up. I don’t believe it.” 

Brody turned her attention to the voice. It sounded like her own, but that couldn’t be possible. She felt her heart stop when she saw who the voice belonged to. It was her. But that couldn’t be possible.

“W-Who-”

“I am you and you are me.” the construct slowly walked forward. Brody took a step back.

“That’s not possible.” 

“It is. I know about everything. Every mistake you made, every feeling you ever felt."It walked around her in a circle, causing her to freeze in her tracks before it made its way back to the center of the room. Suddenly its eyes twitched before it collapsed to the ground clutching its head.“This feeling. The anxiety. It’s overwhelming.” Brody couldn’t fully see its face, but it seemed to have a terrified smile on it.“Why can’t I stop this? It’s just history class, why can’t I handle it?”

Brody froze at those words. How… How did it know what she was thinking before her panic attack?

“You try and try. But it’s no use. This anxiety that courses through your body... it's not a part of you. It is you.” It stood shakily to its feet, standing in front of her with tears in its eyes.“You are your anxiety. Everyone knows it. You’ve seen the way people look at you. Tired of you playing the victim, wanting you to stop freaking out over every little thing.” Its eyes shot up, staring deeply into hers. “BUT HOW CAN YOU!?!” It screamed in agony. “It’s who you are!” 

Brody felt her heart drop. Was this really true? She had seen how people acted around her whenever she did get a panic attack. No matter how hard she tried she couldn’t seem to stop herself from being overwhelmed with anxiety at times. She felt the coldness of the wall against her back. When did she move all that way back? 

A lock of her ginger hair fell forward, blocking part of her sight. Was this really her? What was happening? She just wanted to leave. Its words played through her mind, her head spinning as she processed them. _Is my anxiety all that really defines me?_ She glanced down at her hands. The nail art on her fingers still showed vibrantly even after all these days. Looking at them made her think about her roommate. Her warm smile. How she always stuck by her through her attacks, never looking at her with any hate or annoyance. She never defined her by her anxiety. 

Brody took a deep breath. _So I shouldn’t either._ “I-I’m not defined by this.” she looked towards the construct. “It may feel consuming at times, but I know there is so much more to me.” her eyes were fueled with determination. “I’ll prove it! Not just to others, but to myself!” 

The construct stumbled back, falling to the ground with fear in its eyes. “STOP! THIS IS WHO YOU ARE!” It spat, clutching its chest, a white orb glowing in it. Cracks started to form all around the construct’s body before it burst, leaving behind nothing in its wake. 

Brody tried to register what had just happened when a sharp pain entered her heart. This wasn’t the usual feeling she got with her attacks, this was much more painful. Falling to her knees, she desperately clung to her chest, praying that the pain would end soon. Curling both of her hands, her fingers reached into her palm, her nails piercing through her skin. The nail was art ruined by the blood that was seeping through her wounds. It seemed never-ending, but soon another pain seared on her body. Her hand was consumed with flames. It burned into her flesh, leaving behind the sigil of a flower. After a moment the pain had stopped except for the pain from her palms. 

“You’ve awakened. I was worried.” A voice caused Brody to look up with blurry eyes. There standing where the imposter once stood was a lady wearing a pure white dress. The area around her neck and wrists on the dress was covered in a beautiful golden design. The hem of the dress was soaked with water. She seemed like an ordinary human except for her face. It had a roundness to it, her larger than normal eyes looking at her with serenity. Her nose was barely visible, a small bump with two slits on its sides. Her hair was long and brunette; a flower crown consisting of purple gladiolus laid upon her head. Every couple of seconds droplets of water fell from her hair, hitting the air by her feet and causing a small ripple effect. 

“Worried?” Brody managed to get out, slowly standing to her feet. 

“But now I know I shouldn’t have been.” the lady looked at her with pride. “I am Ophelia.” 

_I am thou, thou art I.  
By casting away the falsehoods placed within your heart and opening your eyes to the truth,  
I have come from the depths of your soul  
to help in your pursuit of justice._

Without another word she turned into a ball of light, flying through the air before landing in Brody’s heart. Suddenly the door opened. Brody turned to see who it was. It took her a few seconds to recognize them; they were the three she ran into the other day. What were they doing here? The three of them fell into the room, their legs shaking as they stood up.

“You’re safe.” Louis let out a sigh of relief.

Violet gave a small smile when she looked towards Brody before she leaned against the wall in exhaustion.

“Hey there. I’m Clementine.” Clementine offered her hand. “I know this is a lot to take in.”

Brody reached out to shake her hand when she noticed the blood collecting on her own hands. 

“You’re hurt.” Clementine’s voice was filled with concern. “We should get you out of here.”

Brody continued to look at her hand. Slowly she reached for her other hand slipping off the glove on it and gently placing it on her heart. “Persona.” The sigil on her hand glowed, casting a pale blue light. Ophelia appeared behind Brody. The droplets of water stood frozen in the air as a wave of tender warmth filled the four of them. The wounds on Brody’s hands disappeared. Clementine lifted up her sleeve. The bruise from the malum that had been healing over the past fews days had vanished. Looking over she saw the other two picking up on the same conclusion, checking their own injuries. 

James’ voice pierced through Clementine’s head.

_I am thou, thou art I  
Thou hast acquired a new bond  
It shall become the voice of justice  
That soothes thine anguish from oppression_

_With the birth of the High Priestess Persona,  
One of instinct and inner Voice  
I have obtained the tongue of truth  
That shall lead to balance and new power._

Brody looked at them, a gentle warmth within her blue eyes. _Without hesitation she healed all of us._ Clementine looked at the spot where the construct had blown up. _She must have a strong inner voice if she was able to reject the construct._

“Shit.” Louis ran forward, catching Brody who had passed out. Violet ran forward too, helping take a side. The sanctum fell apart around them revealing the real world once more. The two carefully placed Brody against a tree. The trio looked at each other, surprised by what this meant. There was another persona user besides them. Now they just had to wait for her to wake up. 

Brody felt her eyes adjusting to the light as she woke up. There sitting nearby were the three that she had seen in that weird place. 

“Hey.” Clementine spoke. “I’m sure you have a lot of questions. If you want, we could grab some food. I promise we will explain everything to you.”

Brody looked at them before nodding. “Okay.”

With that the four of them headed out in Louis’ car, arriving at a nearby diner. Taking their seats in a booth, they placed their orders. They waited for the waitress to leave before explaining the situation. There was a moment of silence.

“I think we should do an ice breaker first.” Louis suggested with a smile. “How about we go around saying our name, major and age.”

Violet leaned back in the booth. “What is this? Class?”

“I’ll start. I’m Clementine, but you can call me Clem. I’m seventeen and my major is undecided.” she looked over at Louis who seemed to appreciate the support.

“I’m Louis. I’m the ripe young age of eighteen and my major is business with a minor in music.” 

Violet sighed. “I’m Violet. Nineteen. My major for now is astrophysics.”

“Really, Vi? Astrophysics.” Louis smirked at his friend.

“Whatever.I can change it if it doesn’t work out.” she shot a look at Louis. 

Brody took a deep breath before beginning her introduction.“I’m Brody. I’m also nineteen and my major is psychology.”Even though it was a simple ice breaker it seemed to do the trick. Brody decided it was best to jump right into the next topic. “What the hell was that place?” 

“It was your sanctum.” Clementine leaned forward. “Think of it as the materialization of your heart.”

“My heart?” 

“I know. It’s weird, but true. What you just accepted into your heart was your Persona. It’s the embodiment of your true self.” 

Brody felt her head pound trying to keep up.“Okay, if you know this, that must mean you have them too.” 

“That’s right.” Louis exclaimed proudly. “With our personas we’re able to help those trapped in their sanctums.”

“It’s complicated in how we help them, but basically we defend those who are unable to.” Clementine added.

“So you’re a team?” Brody leaned back when the food arrived. The group paused until the waitress left.

“Not exactly.” Violet commented, tossing a fry into her mouth. “It was more like we joined forces for a while.”

“But if the need ever arises again, we’ll help again.” 

Violet and Clementine nodded in agreement to Louis’ statement. 

“So what did you join forces on?”

“We took down the Saint John Killers. Well, sort of.”

Brody’s eyes widened in shock at Clementine’s words. “You’re the ones who sent in those anonymous tips.” 

“That’s right.”

“But why are you telling me all this?” Brody looked around at the group.

“Well, we owed you an explanation for what you just went through. That was the least we could do. As for the other part, we were hoping that if we ever teamed up again, you would join us.” Clementine stated, hoping that this was the right move.

Brody couldn’t believe what she was hearing. 

“We persona users gotta stick together, right?” Louis gave a charismatic smile. 

Brody sat in silence for a few minutes. “Alright. I’m in.” 

The trio looked at each other before smiling towards her. 

“Glad to have you, Brody.”


	11. The Bliss of Friendship

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The trio enjoy the moments they share with their new friend Brody.

Louis really had found the perfect spot for the two of them. It was a beautiful sunny day today. However the usual hangout spots that they frequented had no shade meaning after a few minutes it felt like the sun was out to get you. Melting you into a sweaty pile of uncomfortableness. Luckily for Brody and Louis the trees that covered the path to Building E provided the perfect shade.   
Leaning their backs against the tree with their drinks they had gotten from the vending machines they were ready for an hour or two of relaxation with their switches. Turning them on they both quickly selected Animal Crossing: New Horizons. The pair sat in silence enjoying the peacefulness of their islands. 

“Oh, damn it.” Louis murmured he had forgotten to unequip his shovel. So when he had gone to a tree to collect the fruit his character had whacked it with the shovel. His body shaking from the impact of the hit. With a few quick button presses he was back on track.

“What happened?” Brody asked, not looking up from her game.

“Just some stupid mistake.” Louis’ hand blind searched from his can of coke cracking it open when he had found it. Not taking his eyes from his game he took a long sip.

Brody glanced over for a second before returning her attention back to the screen. She couldn’t believe that Louis also was a big Animal Crossing fan. She had always wanted to talk about it with people and now that the newest game had a way to visit each other’s islands it felt like she needed a friend. She was really happy when Louis had asked her if she wanted to hang out with him and just relax and play some Animal Crossing. She was pulled out of her thoughts when she realized that for a minute her character had been hitting one of her neighbor’s houses with a butterfly net. Refocusing on the game she set out to get some goals accomplished for the day. First she needed to plant some more trees, next to find some new fossils for the museum. Seeing Blathers so happy had always put a smile on her face. _Should just focus on those two tasks._ With that her character ran around her island planting a few fruit trees here and there. Then that's when it happened. There crawling before her was the cutest snail.

“Fuck yeah, a snail.” Brody whispered quickly, capturing it she let out a cry of joy. “Louis, look!” She turned her switch towards him. 

“That’s awesome Brody!” he exclaimed, placing his drink down again.

“How’s it going for you?” she asked, opening her bottle of ice tea.

“Pretty good. Got this cool new shirt!” he held out the switch to her displaying the blue Dodo Airlines shirt.

“Aww your character looks really cute in it.”

Louis smiled proudly. “Thanks.” 

The two returned to their games playing for a while before the bell rang.

“It’s two already?” Louis pouted putting away his switch. “Wanna hang out tomorrow, this time?”

Brody looked up at him. “Sure. I can’t wait.”

\----

Brody stifled a yawn as she wandered to her seat sliding into it and dropping her bag down. She knew that an early class was always a risk for her falling asleep but it was the only class available for the math requirement she needed. She was about to stretch her arms and give into the temptation of a yawn when Violet fell into her seat next to her. It had turned out that they had been in the same class all this time but just never really knew each other. Now that they were friends though they always sat next to each other. 

Violet slammed down a coffee cup in front of her then reaching into her bag she pulled out an energy drink. Without a word she opened the energy drink pouring it into the coffee. “This fucking class.” Violet grumbled. “I’m going to die.” She then proceeded to down the contents of her drink in one go. Crushing the cup and tossing it half heartedly towards the garbage can she looked over at Brody. “Why do we need math?”

Brody let out a tired sigh. “I don’t know.” She let out a long yawn before grabbing her notebook out. The class seemed to last forever. She was trying her best to stay awake. Glancing over at Violet, she noticed that she was struggling with the same problem. Her eyes looked dead inside as the professor continued talking about some formula that they would never use in real life. 

“Well, we did it.” Brody yawned again. “One class closer to never having to take it again.” 

“Still don’t know why we have to take it in the first place.” Violet slung her bag over her shoulder.

“Wanna grab some food?”

“I’d love to.” Brody quickly packed up her bag and walked alongside Violet. They made their way towards the cafeteria in hopes of finding a good meal.

\----

Clementine was on her way to the college gym. She really hadn’t considered using it until recently. After battling in sanctums, she figured it would be good to at least go every now and then. Entering the gym she was surprised to see Brody on the treadmill. As she walked over, Clem saw Brody notice her, waving at her before taking out her earbuds.

“Hey Clem! Here for a workout?” she asked with a warm smile.

“That’s the plan. You go to the gym often?”

“Here and there. I started going a while back to just get some exercise into my routine, but then it turned out to help me relax a bit. What about you?”

“It’s my first time. With how crazy the first couple weeks of classes were and the whole persona thing I just hadn’t even given it a thought, but I figured now was a good time to start as any.” Clementine looked around the gym; there sure was a lot of equipment here. Out of the corner of her eye she noticed an older girl with short blond hair who seemed to be mentoring another student in their workout. Brody’s eyes followed Clementine’s.

“Oh yeah, that’s Molly. She’s a volunteer here. She helps mentor others so that she can get practice for her certification. She’s training to be a personal coach.”

“Wow, that's actually really cool.”

“It is. If you wanna join me, you can hop on this treadmill.” Brody offered gesturing to one on her right side. 

“I’d like that.”

It took her a minute to get used to it,but afterwards Clementine was pleasantly surprised that she enjoyed it. After a while she and Brody got off the treadmills, making their way around the gym to the many different stations. _If we ever have to team up again, we’ll need to get in better shape._ Clementine’s thoughts distracted her from paying attention to where she was going.

“Watch out!” Brody’s hand wrapped around Clem’s arm, pulling her away from the wall she was about to run into. 

“Thanks.” Clementine’s eyes fell to Brody’s hands. Her fingers had beautiful nail art on them.

“You do nail art?”

Brody looked at her hands, a gentle smile appeared on her face. “Yeah for some people it stresses them out, but for me it helps me calm down. It’s just so peaceful. My roommate introduced me to the idea and I’ve been hooked ever since.”

“It’s so pretty.” Each nail started with a dark shade of blue at the base gradually changing to a different shade as it went up the nail.

“Thanks, I can show you how to do it sometime if you like?” Brody offered.

“Sounds fun.”

With that the two continued their workout and before long their time was up and they said their goodbyes for now. 

\-----

Brody couldn’t believe that it had only been a few days since she had met Violet, Louis and Clementine. They had accepted her into their friend group so easily and ever since she’d just clicked with each of them. She felt like she could trust them... which is why she had to tell them.

“Who’s ready for a McDonalds run?” Louis asked, dangling his car keys from his fingers. His words snapped Brody out of her train of thought. Violet had already stood up by Louis ready to go.

“I’m down.” Clementine got up from her spot.

“Yeah, let’s go.” Brody replied, up from her seat. The four of them were soon in front of the drive-thru window.

“Hello, welcome to McDonald’s what can I get for you today?” A voice spoke through the speaker.

“Yes, umm I’d like one happy meal, a big mac, a cheeseburger, twenty chicken nuggets, two apple pies and a large fry.” Louis responded to the speaker.

“Get more chicken nuggets.” Violet bothered him from the shotgun seat.

“No, Violet, that's all you’re getting.” Louis replied to which Violet crossed her arms in frustration.

“Sir, would you like a boy or girl toy to go with your happy meal?”

“Girl toy.”

Violet let out a snort.

“Shut up.” Louis whispered to her.

“And you would like apple slices or fries?”

“Fries.”

“Alright if you just pull up to the next window please.” 

“Thank you.” Louis slowly turned his car around the corner, pulling up to the first window and paying for the food. Shortly after, he reached the next window.

“Hello, here’s your food.” 

Louis took the food from the worker. “Would you like any sauces or anything?”

“Yeah could you get us some ketchup?”

“Ketchup, sure.” The worker ducked back inside before handing him the ketchup packets.

“Is that all?”

“Yes, that’s all.”

“Alright, have a good day.”

“You too.” Louis replied with a smile before rolling up his window. “Run, run, run,” he exclaimed, pulling quickly out of the driveway.

“Wait, did we get all the food?” Clementine asked, leaning forward from the back seats.

“The nuggets are here.” Violet replied, her mouth already full of chicken nuggets.

Brody held onto the back of the front seat as Louis did a sharp turn. “Does it always go like this?”

“Most of the time.”

After a few minutes they were back at Ericson sitting on one of the lawns, McDonald’s containers laid in front of them. It only took them a few minutes to decimate the food. Brody looked around at her friends who were all laughing at the most recent story told about how Louis fell asleep in philosophy class only to get called on. When he did Violet had whispered a wrong answer to the question.

“So then when Professor Walter asked ‘what is the value of beauty?’, Louis answered ‘four’.” Clementine told the story, holding her stomach as she continued to laugh.

“It’s not that funny.” Louis replied before chuckling at the memory.

“I can’t believe you thought ‘four’ was a good answer for a philosophy question.” Violet commented, laughing until she noticed that something was up with Brody. “Brody. ”Violet started, causing Brody to look up from her thoughts. 

“Oh sorry, I wanted to tell you guys something, but I didn’t want to ruin the mood.”

“It’s okay, Brody,” Clementine gave a reassuring smile. “You can tell us.”

Brody shifted her weight before looking at the three of them. 

“I think someone is following me.”


	12. A Heated Confrontation

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Clementine, Violet and Louis try to figure out how to confront the person they think has been following Brody. But are thrown off when that person ends up confronting them.

Clementine couldn’t believe the news that Brody shared. Someone was following her? Louis, Violet and her quickly agreed to help figure out who it was. Till then the three promised Brody that whenever they could they would walk with her to different locations. It was clear that this was stressing Brody out. Even if it only helped a little bit, the three of them wanted to help her. 

“Thanks guys, for always walking with me.” Brody whispered as the four of them walked around campus.

“It’s our pleasure.” Louis did a little bow before continuing his casual stroll. 

“Don’t worry, Brody. We’ll find out who’s following you.” Clementine placed a reassuring hand on Brody’s shoulder. Brody gave a thankful smile which disappeared seconds later. She paused for a moment, causing the others to stop as well.

“What’s wrong? Clementine asked with concern.

“Keep walking.” Brody whispered, continuing forward. The others looked at each other before catching up with her. Brody gestured her head towards a student who was sitting at one of the benches by Building O. 

“I’m not one hunded percent sure, but I think she might be the one who’s been following me.” 

All of them took a quick glance over there. Sitting and reading a book was an Indian girl with a long black braid.

“Shit.” Violet mumbled.

“What is it?” Louis asked, looking over at his friend.

“I ran into her a little while ago.”

“You did?” Louis looked surprised. “What happened?”

“Nothing, I ran into her and apologized, that’s it.” 

“Let’s go to the cafeteria. We can talk there.” Clementine suggested, leading the way there. After a few minutes the group had grabbed some food and sat around a table. 

“So, what’s the plan?” Louis asked, opening his first of many pudding cups. 

“We should report it, right?” Brody looked around anxiously.

“Or we could confront her, tell her to leave Brody alone.” Violet commented, taking a sip from her drink.

“No, if we confront her it may go badly. Who knows what she might do.” Clementine placed a hand under her chin. When she had started college, the most she expected to deal with was classes and maybe a crush. While she had both of those now, it always seemed like something intense forced its way into her and her friends’ lives. What was the right course of action here? She was pulled out of her train of thought by Louis’ voice.

“Shit, she followed us.” The group tried to sneak a look over at where he was gesturing. Sure enough the girl was there, only a few tables away. Brody turned her attention to their table, taking a few deep breaths to deal with this turn of events. 

“Maybe Violet is right.” Louis stated. “It looks like she won’t leave Brody alone.”

“We need to calm down.” Clementine stopped when she noticed the girl making her way over. She halted her walk, standing in between Louis and Brody. Both seemed to feel the tension of the situation.

“Can I help you?” Clementine asked, hoping that this wouldn’t turn sour somehow. 

“Sorry to bother you. My name is Prisha Chakyar.” 

“Why have you been following our friend?” Violet didn't bother to look up from her tray, an expression of annoyance on her face.

Prisha seemed surprised by this before her face returned to being unreadable. 

“So you noticed that. I was following her because I was concerned for her safety.” 

“My safety?” Brody whispered, looking over at her.

“The company you’re keeping. How much do you really know about them?”

“What are you implying?” Brody looked confused by the statement Prisha had just made.

“I have reason to believe they may have been involved in something dangerous.” Prisha seemed to notice Clementine’s gaze upon her. 

_This girl…. What is she up to?_ Clementine felt her body tense. 

“That’s a pretty rude thing to say.” Louis tossed aside his first pudding cup, opening another. “After all, you don't even know us.”

“I may not know you personally, but as I stated before I have reason to believe you were involved in something dangerous recently. It had something to do with the Saint John Killers.” The four all froze, hoping that she wouldn’t pick up on their slight change in behavior. 

“Why is that?” Clementine asked, praying that it would throw Prisha off though for some reason she doubted it would.

“First of all, during the time that the sheriff and his men had instructed on the news that the campus would be closed, I noticed the three of you sneaking onto campus.” 

Shit. So that presence that they had felt when they snuck in… was that her?

“They were helping me.” Louis replied, awkwardly scratching the back of his head. “I had forgotten something on campus and my dad would’ve lost his shit if I didn’t get it back.”

“Really? You couldn’t have waited until the campus was open again?” Prisha raised her eyebrow. She didn’t seem to buy his story. Louis was a horrible liar.

“No, he couldn’t stop fucking talking about it. It was either get it or go insane.” Violet glared at Prisha. 

“If that’s all you had, then you don’t need to worry about me. My friends are good people.” Brody exclaimed, trying to calm her heart. This situation was really beginning to wear on her. 

“It’s not all I have. The anonymous tips that were sent in - it was reported that the voices were young, around college age.” 

“How do you know that?” Brody asked, glancing up at Prisha.

“My father is on the force.”

Shit. Not only was she observant, she also seemed to have some pretty strong connections. How were they going to convince her it wasn’t them? Clementine felt the tension rising around her, but she didn’t let it show on her face.

“But it could’ve been anyone’s voice. We aren’t the only college students on this campus, let alone in the area.” Clementine stated matter of factly.

“It’s true it could’ve been anyone’s voice.” Prisha agreed. “However, it was my third reason that cemented my belief.”

Clementine could tell this conversation was wearing on her friends in different ways. Brody looked like she was trying to hold herself together, Violet looked more and more annoyed with each sentence that Prisha spoke and Louis tried to act chill, but he was nearly choking on his food.

“And what would that be?” Clementine figured if she could shoot down the third one, maybe that would be enough to at least buy them some time.

“The girl that died: Amelia. I noticed that all three of you daily visited her memorial shrine on campus. None of you had a class with her.”

“It’s common decency to mourn the dead.” Louis commented, opening yet another pudding cup.

“It is. However, only you three left flowers and very specific ones at that. The one that stood out the most was the one that you placed.” She looked towards Violet who seemed to be getting near her limit of this conversation. “Always the same one: a purple hyacinth, which represents sorrow and regret.” 

Violet slammed her hands on the table, standing up.“I don’t know who the fuck you think you are!” she hissed, glaring at Prisha. “But you don’t get to come here and accuse us of killing Amelia!”

Prisha flinched at Violet’s action, her face filled with shock.“I wasn’t trying to imply that you three were killers. However, the way you acted and mourned for her leads me to believe that you feel somewhat responsible for Amelia’s death. You have some sort of tie to the cases.”

“We don’t have any ties and you have nothing substantial to prove otherwise.” There was a level of coldness to Clementine’s voice.

Prisha seemed annoyed at Clementine’s words. “I will. After all, the proof is in the pudding.” She exclaimed, sticking her finger in Louis’ pudding cup.

“My pudding!” Louis pulled away the cup, looking sadly at it.

Prisha’s face fell with embarrassment before she recentered herself. “All I’m asking is that if you have any information you go to the sheriff and report it. To help ease the grief that the families are dealing with.” With that she turned and left. 

Brody let out a shaky breath, leaning back in her chair. Violet slouched down in her seat. Her face was twisted with anger. “I can’t believe this.” Brody whispered. “She really did have a lot against you.”

“Nothing that she could use. Besides, the way we were involved would never hold up as evidence so we should be okay… for now.” Clementine let out a tired sigh. Prisha was really sharp; they had to watch their steps from now on.

“Well, maybe she was just bluffing about stuff.” Louis grumbled, scooping around where Prisha's finger had been, desperately trying to salvage the pudding cup.

“Just get another one!” Violet snapped.

“No! She doesn’t get to ruin my pudding too!” Louis snapped back, tossing some pudding onto the table. 

Brody pulled out her laptop, typing furiously before pausing. Her eyes widened. “Holy shit!” She turned around her laptop to face the others. “She wasn’t lying. Her dad is a cop.” 

A picture of Prisha smiling with her dad in a police uniform was displayed on the screen.

“Not only that - look at her major.” Louis pointed at the laptop.

“Shit, she’s a law major.” Violet let out an angry groan. “We’re so fucking screwed.”

Clementine looked at the picture of Prisha that stared back at her. How were they going to deal with this?


	13. A Potentially Dangerous Rumor

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Louis overhears a conversation that makes him feel like something is off while the rest of his friends figure it's nothing. But with a rumor they hear spreading around campus they decide to look into the matter.

The encounter with Prisha had seemed to throw everyone off their groove. Clementine tried her best to reassure them that it hadn’t changed anything for their day to day life. So the four tried their best to continue on like normal. Louis let out a tired sigh as he left his French class. It wasn’t that he didn’t enjoy the class. In fact it was one of the few that he really cared about. The conflict with Prisha just still seemed to consume his thoughts; someone had been watching them ever since the beginning. 

They had done the right thing by getting involved. Santiago and Emma might not be alive today if they hadn’t. But Prisha seemed to have a point too; her heart was in the right place and so was theirs. Louis shook his head. He needed to focus - he had class in twenty minutes. Slipping into the nearby building, he made his way up to the second floor, freezing when he heard two people down the hall in an argument. He couldn’t go past them without making things awkward, so Louis hid behind the wall and listened, hoping the fight would end soon. 

“Listen, I know that you have been working hard on the thesis that I let you take part in, but that doesn’t mean that you can just slack off on your normal class assignments.” Judging from the voice, Louis guessed it was a female professor.

“I’m sorry, Professor Weathers. I’ve just been swamped by this semester’s work load.” a young man's voice replied. He sounded drained.

“So have all of us. If you want me to drop you from the thesis, I will. It seems like I might’ve been wrong about your ability to complete it.” the professor's harsh tone made Louis feel on edge. 

“No! I can handle it!”

“Good.” 

Louis decided to risk a peek. Leaning out, he could see the back of the professor’s head. Short curly brown hair covered her head, but that was all he could take in before getting back into cover when the professor suddenly turned around. He waited until the classroom door shut before moving. Looking at his phone, he let out a curse. He was going to be late for class. 

“Classes were so boring today.” Violet groaned, puncturing the juice box before taking a long sip from it. 

Brody leaned back in her chair, letting out a yawn. She paused when she noticed Louis make his way over.“Hi, Louis.” she gave a friendly smile which he returned before placing his tray down with a groan.

“I’m guessing classes were no fun for you today either.” Clementine asked, a sympathetic smile on her face.

“Classes were okay, I guess. I’m more on edge from an awkward conversation I almost ran into.” Louis replied, taking a bite from his apple. 

“What awkward conversation?” Brody leaned forward.

“I was on my way to my next class after French when a student and a professor got into an argument in the hallway. I think it was Professor Weathers.”

“Weathers?” Violet looked up from her juice box.

“Yeah, you know her?”

“No, just heard about her from my friend Sophie. She said she’s a good professor.”

“Well, I wouldn’t want to take her class. She was really intense. She obviously didn’t give a shit about the student that she was talking to.”

“Maybe she’s just strict.” Clementine commented, placing down her sandwich.

“Maybe.” Louis looked around the cafeteria, pausing on a college student that seemed to capture his attention for some reason. He looked back at the group, opened his mouth to comment, but then thought better of it. “Anyway, let’s just talk about something else.” 

With that the conversation turned to happy topics. The four of them spent most of lunch discussing the days they could hang out and some potential new spots to try. Before they knew it they had to go their separate ways. 

Clementine tried to stifle a yawn as she walked with her friends.

“See, Louis? Even Clem is done with this story.” Violet’s voice caused her to refocus on the conversation.

“Sorry, I’m just tired. I was busy watching _Disco Broccoli_ with my brother last night and I had forgotten that I still had that English paper due so I ended up staying up almost the whole night.” Clementine gave Louis an apologetic look.

“No worries, Clem.” he gave a warm smile before continuing his story. After a few minutes he was interrupted again, this time by Brody.

“Sorry, I’d love to hear the end of the story, but my class is in Building O.” She waved to her friends before sprinting off into the building. The three of them continued on their way when they   
overheard two college students talking about an intriguing subject.

“I’m not lying. I heard that her last student that she took on to help with her thesis lost her shit. She accused Professor Weathers of stealing her work, but the school sided with the professor.”

“I mean, it makes sense. You gotta side with the teacher on that one. Hasn’t Professor Weathers been here for years?”

“Yeah, but here’s where the story gets crazy. After that the student dropped out of Ericson University and fell into a deep depression. People say she was cutting herself because she couldn’t handle how things ended. It got so bad that she had to be hospitalized.”

“Holy shit.”

The trio looked at each other.

“You don’t think that student I saw her talking to is in trouble, do you?” Louis looked really concerned. His mind had already jumped to the worst case scenario.

“We don’t know that for sure,” Clementine reassured.

“Besides it just sounds like a rumour.” Violet commented before continuing forward. “Come on, we’re going to be late.” 

Maybe Vi was right. Clementine glanced back at the two college students talking, but for some reason the story had set her on edge.

This wasn’t the only time they heard the rumour. It seemed that everywhere they went they heard it spreading: the tragedy of Mrs. Weathers’ previous student and the accusations of plagiarism.

“Do you think the rumour is true?” Brody asked, shifting in her seat. 

“I’m not sure.” Clementine placed a hand under her chin. “The fact that it’s spreading this much is concerning though.”

“We could look into it.” Louis suggested. Violet glanced up at him.

“How would we do that?”

“We could check the campus for rifts. Maybe if one is open, that would prove that the rumour holds some weight. If she really is stealing their work, maybe that student that I saw her with is next.”

The group sat in silence for a moment. All of them were in agreement with Louis, but each of them hoped that there were no rifts. They didn’t want the rumour to be true.

“I think we should go with Louis’ plan. Let’s meet up at the fountain after classes. Unless any of you object?” Clementine looked around at her friends. Each of them looked a bit uneasy about the plan, but they all agreed nonetheless. 

The rest of the day went by slowly. Violet spun her pencil around her finger, her last lecture of the day completely going over her head. She was too busy thinking about what it could mean if another rift was open. The bell ringing pulled her out of her thoughts. Reluctantly she exited her class. She had the latest class out of her friends so she knew she would be the last to show up at the fountain. When she arrived she was surprised by the tension in the air. Brody looked heartbroken, her feet dangling off the fountain as she sat there, her gaze fixated on the ground. Louis stood by her, his face filled with pain. He only looked at Violet for a second before he looked away. Violet looked towards Clementine for answers.

“What the hell happened?” 

“The student in the rumour. She died, killed herself this afternoon.” Clementine’s words barely got out. Violet felt her heart tighten. Not again - not another student dying. Now they had to find   
something. Anything that could prove if this rumour was true.

The four quickly split off, each taking a section of campus. They figured they could cover more this way. One hour was the time set by the group. Whether or not they found anything they would meet up by the fountain in an hour. Violet slowly walked around the eastern side of campus. She had to make sure to pay attention where she was walking. One wrong step and she could accidentally open up a rift and fall into it alone. 

After a while it seemed like the search would be futile. She was about to head back when she saw a familiar face exiting the building that helped LGBTQ students on campus. Prisha stood outside the building. A male college student was screaming at her. Without hesitation, Violet made her way over. 

“I can't believe we allow students like you on campus. It makes me sick thinking that I have classes with people like you.” the student spat at Prisha, venom in his voice as he slowly approached her. Prisha tried to keep her cool, but it was clear that this conversation was affecting her. Violet didn’t think twice. Running forward, she stood in between Prisha and the college student. He looked surprised before his expression turned to anger again. “Who the hell are you?” he glared at Violet who stared back at him, her body in a defensive stance. 

“Back off.” Violet hissed.

His eyes widened. “Oh, don’t tell me. You two are together?” His face twisted in hate. “That’s so fucking wrong.”

“You better back the fuck off!” Violet yelled, taking a step forward. The college student took a shaky step back. Violet’s stare burned into him, warning him that he didn’t want to piss her off even more. 

“You’re not wanted here!” he declared, slowly backing away. “Just remember that!” He then turned and stormed away. Violet felt her shoulders relax slightly before she turned towards Prisha.

“You okay?”

“I’m fine.” Prisha paused, wondering if she should ask the question burning in her mind. “Why did you help me? I thought you hated me.”

“I don’t hate you… I...” Violet’s words faltered out. “No one deserves that kind of shit. I couldn’t just ignore an asshole like that going around saying shit that isn’t true.”

Prisha seemed surprised by Violet’s words before a gentle smile appeared on her face. “Thank you. It means a lot that you would help me.” 

Violet looked up at her with a small smile on her face. “It was nothing.”There was a moment of silence between the two of them. Violet glanced down at her phone to check the time.“Shit, sorry, I gotta go.” Violet turned to leave when she paused, looking over her shoulder. “Are you going to be okay?”

“Yes, I will now.” 

Violet nodded at those words, sprinting off into the direction of the fountain. Reuniting with her friends, it was clear by one look that they had found nothing. All four of them stood in silence. Where were they supposed to go from here?

Clementine felt her frustration and uselessness plague her mind as she poked her fork into the chicken parmesan. She pulled at the cheese, tearing it apart while she wondered what the hell she could do to see if Professor Weathers really was guilty of anything.

“Sweet Pea?” Lee’s worried tone drew Clementine’s attention away from her dissection of her dinner and up at her father. “Is everything alright?”

“Yeah… no,” Clementine let out an exhausted sigh. She couldn’t exactly tell Lee what was bugging her. It wasn’t like he could do anything. That’s when the realization struck her. She dropped her fork and stared up at her dad. “Lee, can I ask you something?”

“Sure.”

“I know you’re new at Ericson University but have you heard anything about Professor Weathers?”

Lee placed down his fork and wiped his mouth, looking at his daughter with a curious expression. “Why?”

“Rumors seem to be circling around her so I’d just thought I’d ask if you knew anything about it.”

“I don’t know much about her. Sure we're in the same department but besides the general gossip around work I don’t know anything.” The expression on Clem’s face made him pause. “ I wouldn’t give rumours too much weight though. Take it with a grain of salt. Whenever someone has any fame there will always be rumors about them to bring them down.” 

Lee wasn’t wrong, that was the truth in most cases but this one felt fishy. Somewhere deep in Clementine’s gut she knew something was up. Leaning back in her chair she let out a defeated sigh. 

“Shit.” Clementine whispered under her breath. 

“Swear,” AJ’s words were muffled as the chicken Parmesan fell from his mouth. A long strand of cheese snapped and whacked him in the face.

“AJ,” Lee had a serious tone “What have I said about manners.” 

AJ looked sad, his face falling with shame. “Sorry.”

Clementine abruptly got up from her spot causing her father to glance up her way. “Where are you going?”

“My room,” Clementine mumbled and turned sharply on her heel. “I’ll finish dinner later. Got homework to do.” She moves toward the swear jar tossing in a crumpled dollar bill before going up stairs. When she got to her room she fell backward on her bed. Her one bright idea had been a bust. Now there really was no way that she could think of to move forward with this. 

Clementine looked around at her friends who seemed half-heartedly interested in the lunch before them. When they had searched the campus the other day they returned empty-handed. No rifts were on campus, which only seemed to dishearten them more each day. There had to be some way to see if this rumour was true. Clem felt in her gut it was, and now that someone had died it made the pressure even more intense on the group. Out of the corner of her eye, she noticed Prisha sitting down alone at one of the cafeteria tables. 

_What if…._

“This may sound crazy, but hear me out.” Her words caused the others to look up. “What if we took a different approach to the rumour?”

“What approach would that be?” Brody asked.

“We ask for help from Prisha.”

“Prisha?” Violet questioned, shocked by the suggestion.

“She was able to get a lot of information on us without us being aware that she was investigating. We know next to nothing about what to do to keep following the rumour. But with her connections and intuition we may have a chance.”

“I don’t know, Clem.” Louis responded. “Wouldn’t it be dangerous to team up with her? We almost got found out because of her.”

“It may actually be better that we team up with her now than wait.” Clementine leaned back in her chair. “Not only do we need her help, but if she was on our side we could decide what information she finds out about us.” The other three still looked unconvinced. “I know she was harsh when she confronted us the other day, but the more I thought about it the more I realized something. While her accusation was blunt, her intentions were pure.”The words seemed to make the others look at Clementine with curiosity. “Think about it. First she came over because she was concerned for Brody’s safety. She seemed to have followed us not out of fun or some shit like that, but from a strong sense of duty to do right by others. She confronted us out of concern for the other students here. So when you think about it, we’re not that different from her. I think if we ask her she would agree to help us, but I only want to do this if we all agree.”

Her friends remained silent, processing the argument she had made.

“Let’s do it.” Violet answered, a determined look on her face. The rest of the group looked shocked. They didn’t expect her to be the first to speak, but she seemed sure of the decision. 

“Alright. If she is a good person like Clem thinks she is, then it’s our best chance.” Louis gave a reassuring smile, leaning forward in his chair.

“She did seem really concerned for me. Plus she seems like someone we’d rather have on our side than against.” Brody looked up at her friends. “Let’s ask her for help.”

“It’s settled then. Does anyone want to talk to her?” Clementine’s question was met with silence that spoke volumes. It was clear that they all hoped she would. Without another word, Clementine rose from her spot and made her way over to Prisha.

“Could I speak with you for a minute?” 

Prisha glanced up from her lunch, surprised to see Clementine, but quickly gestured to the seat across her.

“I’d like to apologize.”

Prisha quirked an eyebrow. “What for?”

“The other day I lied to you,” Clementine’s gaze fell to the table. “When I said we had no ties to the case.”

Prisha didn’t respond, waiting to hear the rest of Clementine’s explanation.

“When the first case aired on the news, we were inspired by the anonymous tip. We thought if we investigated the serial killers maybe we could help save people too.” Clementine paused before looking over at Prisha. “But it was naive to think that. Just when we thought we could be heroes, news broke out about Amelia's death. Knowing that our investigation had done nothing and that a student had died… it shook us.” Clementine felt a familiar pain enter her heart. Tears were threatening to escape. Taking a deep breath, she continued. “We gave up after that. What was the point of continuing when the killers were eventually caught? It gave us some peace of mind, but when you showed up it brought up some bad memories.”

“I’m sorry, that wasn’t my intention.” 

“I know you were just trying to do the right thing. My friends and I just took it the wrong way. Louis and Violet care deeply about people, they just may not always be the best at expressing it. But you were just looking out for Brody and the families who went through unimaginable pain. You wanted to do the right thing, which is why I need to ask for a favor.”

“What might that be?” Prisha asked, studying Clementine’s face.

“Have you heard about the rumors revolving around Professor Weathers?”

“I have. From what I heard, people believe that she may have stolen a student’s work and passed it on as her own. Beyond that, my knowledge is limited.”

“According to the rumours, a student had accused her of stealing her work only for the school to side with the professor. She ended up leaving the school, falling into a depression and cutting herself so badly that she had to be hospitalized. A couple days ago she was found dead. She took her own life.” Clementine felt her heart breaking at sharing the news. However she hoped that it would lead to a partnership that would stop something like this from happening again.

Prisha’s face fell in sorrow.“I had no idea about that. To think that it would end like that...” Prisha’s voice got caught in her throat.

“I know that we didn’t succeed the first time, but we want to try and help again.”

Prisha looked up at those words. 

“We want to see if these rumours are true because even if there’s only a slim chance they are, we don’t want anyone else dying. It was clear from last time though that we were ill-prepared. That’s why I’ve come over to ask for your help.”

“You want my help?”

“It became clear after you talked with us that your skill level is far above ours when it comes to investigating. I know it’s a lot to ask, but I think together we may be able to make a difference.”

Silence fell over the table as Prisha carefully considered the offer, processing all the information Clementine had brought forward. “I’ll help.” Prisha locked eyes with Clementine. 

Slowly Clementine offered her hand which Prisha accepted, shaking it. Clementine hoped that this partnership was the right plan and that it would lead to the truth behind the rumors.


	14. Time Strengthens All Bonds

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Prisha works with Clementine and her friends and soon starts to form friendships of her own with them.

Clementine leaned forward, taking a sip from her drink before starting the meeting. “So we’re starting at square one with this. All that we know so far is that Professor Weathers is rumoured to have possibly stolen her student’s work.” 

“Also that the school sided with the professor which caused the student to leave.” Louis added, a serious expression on his face.

“Which led her to cutting herself and then suicide.” Brody whispered, clearly still shaken by the news. 

“How the hell are we supposed to find out if this rumour is true or not?” Violet asked, crossing her arms.

“Well, I think we start by looking more into the student,” Prisha stated, her eyes focused on the table. She had been quiet as she tried to think of the best course of action. “As well as Professor Weathers.”

Clementine nodded. “I agree. We should split up into three teams for the investigation.”

Prisha looked up with a confused expression.“Three?’

“That’s right. The first team will look more into the student that died, Kenzie Ross,and their history here, the second will focus on the professor and as for the third team they will look further back into these thesis projects.”

“That makes sense. This may not be the first case involving Professor Weathers and plagiarism after all.” Prisha, leaned back both impressed by Clementine and slightly annoyed that she hadn't thought of it first. 

“So who should be on the teams?” Brody asked. “Someone is going to have to investigate alone.”

Prisha was about to speak up, figuring it would be best for her to offer to investigate alone.

“I’ll do it.” Violet mumbled. “Just tell me which one I got.”

“Alright, you look into the professor.” Clementine looked at her friend who nodded in agreement.

“Brody and Louis, can you look into the student?”

“Yeah we got it, right Brody?” Louis asked with a confident smile. 

“You can count on us.” Brody replied, high fiving Louis. 

“That leaves looking into potential past scandals. Are you okay with teaming up with me, Prisha?”

“Sure, I look forward to working with you.”

Clementine gave a warm smile.

Louis glanced down at his phone. “Shit, we’ve got class.” 

“Alright, I’ll text you guys later on to set up another meet up time.” Clementine rose to her feet. Soon everyone was up. Violet, Louis and Clementine had already started to make their way towards the building. Prisha began to go her separate way only to pause when she heard Brody’s voice.

“Wait, Prisha!” Brody walked up beside her. “I just wanted to say thank you.”

“Thank me? For what?” Prisha asked, shifting her backpack on her back.

“Well, back when you confronted us you were just trying to look out for me, right?” Brody’s face beamed with a grateful smile. “It means a lot to me that you would look out for me even though we were strangers.”

Prisha was taken aback by this. “It was nothing.”

Brody shook her head. “No, it wasn’t. Say, do you wanna grab some food? You don’t have class now, do you?” 

“We can’t work on the investigation since we’re on different teams.” Prisha stated matter-of-factly. 

“Well I wasn’t planning to work on it. I just want to hang out with you.”

“You do?” Prisha looked shocked by this. 

“Of course, we’re friends after all. So you in?”

Prisha paused before nodding. With that the two of them made their way towards the cafeteria. Prisha looked at Brody happily walking beside her. She really wasn’t mad at her for the confrontation? In fact she was thankful for the concern? Prisha looked forward, enjoying the simple beauty of the campus. _A friend huh?_ A small smile appeared on Prisha’s face.

\----

Brody let out a tired sigh. This day was really kicking her ass. Not only were the classes piling on more and more work but she also had the investigation to worry about. It had only been a few days but already Louis and her were running into trouble with it. She had offered to run and get some much deserved snacks from the convenience store across the street while Louis continued investigating. Walking across the street, she entered the door. A small bell rang to signal her entrance. Looking around it seemed like a small family runned shop. Only a few aisles filled the room.

“Welcome.” a voice called from the cashier. Brody glanced over and noticed a young man standing by the cash register. His brown hair blew slightly thanks to the breeze that had carried through when she had opened the door. 

_Shit, he’s cute._ Brody was surprised by her own thought, quickly whispering a thank you before making her way deeper into the store. She wandered back to where the drinks were being held, taking out a Coke and an ice tea from it. Tucking them in her arms she moved towards the chips, grabbing a bag of Takis then proceeding to the candy aisle. Her eyes searched for the right sweet treats, widening when she found them. Snagging two Snickers and a bag of Skittles she walked towards the single cash register that was active, placing the treats down on the counter.

“Find everything you were looking for?” the cashier asked, beginning the process of scanning the items. 

“Yes, thank you.” She replied, her eyes looking towards him. She noticed his name tag read Mitch. 

“Your name is Mitch?” she asked without even thinking.

“Yep. What’s your name?” He grabbed the chips, scanned it and put it in the plastic bag.

“Brody.”

“That’s a nice name.” He gave a small smile. “Are you a college student at Ericson?”

“That’s right.”

He placed the last item in the bag. “That’s the total.” he nodded towards the screen. Brody pulled out her wallet, taking out the correct amount and placing it in his hand. 

“Thank you.”

“No problem. Stop by anytime.” He replied.

Brody made her way back to the tree Louis had planted his butt down under. His face twisted with frustration and concentration as he looked at the computer before him. Hearing Brody’s footsteps he looked up, a happy smile on his face.

“Hey Brody, you got the snacks.”

Brody lifted up the bag.

“Awesome!” He took his share of the treats, opening the bag of Takis.

“So I’m guessing you didn't have any luck.” Brody sat down and leaned over to look at his computer screen.

“Nope.” He tossed a taki in his mouth, a small wince appearing on his face as he chewed.

“Why do you get Takis if they’re too spicy for you?”

“I ask myself the same question each time and the answer is always the same. The pain is worth it for the deliciousness that is a Taki.”

Brody shook her head; she didn’t understand that at all. Looking at the work before them she hoped that the other teams were having more luck on their ends. 

\----

Prisha slowly walked through the halls of the music building. She needed a break from all the work on the investigation. It was going nowhere and spending any more time on it would only frustrate her even more. As she walked by a room she paused, hearing a delicate, calming melody coming from the piano. _I wonder who's playing?_ She was too curious not to check it out. Wandering forward, she recognized the pianist. Louis’ dreadlocks swayed slightly while he played the gentle tune. He paused his playing when he saw her, turning around on the piano bench to face her.

“Oh, Prisha! I didn’t see you come in.”

“My apologies, I heard the song and wanted to see who was playing it. I didn’t know you played the piano. You’re quite good.” Her statement caused Louis’ eyes to widen in shock. 

“I’m still pretty rusty,” he scratched the back of his head, giving a nervous smile. “Not really doing Liszt any favors by my playing.”

“You enjoy classical music?” Prisha asked, making her way over to stand by the piano. 

“Yeah, there's just something so captivating about it. What’s your music preference?”

“I enjoy musicals.”

“Ah, so you’re a theater nerd.” Louis replied with a playful smile.

Prisha returned the smile.

“You better believe it. I was the biggest theater nerd all throughout junior high and high school.” Prisha said proudly. 

“Well, I don’t know many musical tunes on the piano, but maybe you know this one.” Louis spun around, placing his fingers above the keys. With a dramatic flair he began to play a song. It took only a moment for Prisha to recognize it. She couldn’t believe he knew the song “Ya Got Trouble” from _The Music Man._ An excited smile overtook her face as he played the song. He began to sing the song, nodding towards her to join in which she did so gladly.

Trouble!  
Oh we got trouble,  
Right here in river city,  
Right here in river city,  
With a capital T that rhymes with P and that stands for pool!  
That stands for pool!

Prisha walked around excitedly by the piano as Louis continued to play, beaming with a joyful smile. Before they knew it the song was done. 

“Damn, Prisha, you’ve got quite the voice.”

“Thanks, you’re not bad yourself.” 

Suddenly the bell went off, signaling that it was three o’clock.

“I have to go. I promised to meet Clem for coffee. But we should totally do this again sometime.” Louis shuffled up to his feet. 

“I agree.” 

With that Louis exited the room, leaving Prisha alone in the music room. She felt an excited joy in her heart. She couldn’t wait for next time. 

\----

Clementine let out a shaky breath. Shit, she was nervous. She had asked Louis to coffee and he had agreed which wasn’t anything unusual, but her reasons behind it were. She was going to tell him how she felt. This wasn’t exactly the best time to confess her feelings considering the investigation, but ever since she started college there was never a good time. She doubted there would be considering her and her friends’ luck. This crush wasn’t going to go away nor did she want it to; she just hoped that her feelings would be reciprocated. It was hard to tell with Louis whether he was just being friendly or was seriously interested in her. But she couldn’t let that scare her out of confessing. She just needed to wait for him to show up and then go for it.

“Hey, Clem! Sorry I’m late, got caught up in something.” Louis gave an apologetic smile as he stood in front of her. 

“That’s okay. I already got you a drink. I hope that's okay.” She offered him the drink which he gladly accepted, taking a sip from it. 

“So, how was your day?” he asked while they made their way over to a bench.

“Good so far. You?”

“Yep. I’ve had a pretty good day too.” He flashed her a smile that made her heart skip a beat. 

“Louis,” she paused. Should she just go for it? “I have something I need to tell you.”

Louis looked over at her.

“I… like you as more than just a friend.” Clementine looked over at Louis who had a surprised expression on his face. His grip on the coffee weakened causing the coffee to fall, spilling on his pants. 

“Oh, shit!” he exclaimed, jumping to his feet. 

“Crap, I’m sorry!” Clementine stood up as well, trying to figure out what to do. “Wait here.” she sprinted off in search of something to help Louis. Her nerves continued to rise as she ran. There was no way he’d say yes after she had caused him to spill coffee on himself. Snatching up some nearby napkins she made her way back to the bench and handed them to Louis. He began to clean off the coffee. 

After a few minutes they had done as much as they could to get the coffee off his pants.

“Are you okay?” Clementine looked over in concern.

“Yep, the coffee smell will just add to my charm.” he gave a playful smile which disappeared for a second. “Clem, I hoped that you had feelings for me.” He shifted his weight nervously. His eyes met hers, a warm smile on his face. “I can’t even process this. It’s like... holy shit, it’s me! I can’t believe it!” Clementine smiled back at him, causing him to get a bit nervous. “I like you too. Y’know, more than a friend.”

Clementine felt her heart leap at those words. She couldn’t believe it. He felt the same way about her. “Are you free tonight?”

“Yeah.” Louis looked confused by her question.

“Would you like to go see a movie with me?”

Louis’ face was filled with shock before his expression changed to an excitement.“I’d love to.”

“Alright, the showing for the movie is at 8.”

“I’ll pick you up at 7:30.”

Clementine smiled at those words. “I can’t wait. I need to go. I have a class, but I’ll see you then.” She turned, waving towards him as she went her seperate way. Louis waved back until she disappeared. He couldn’t stop smiling. He looked down at his pants. He really needed to change his clothes though. It was a good thing he didn’t have any more classes for the day. With that he made his way back to his dorm room, swinging the door open and causing his roommate to jump slightly.

“Shit, Louis, you scared me.”

“Sorry, Marlon. I just got the greatest news of all time!” His face was beaming.  
“I really hope it doesn’t have to do with your pants.” Marlon glanced at Louis’ pants, completely stained with coffee.

“Well, sorry to disappoint but it does. Clem just told me she likes me. Me!” he gestured to himself in disbelief. “I even told her how I feel too!”

“That’s great!” Marlon smiled back at his friend. “But what does that have to do with your pants?”

“Oh yeah, I spilled coffee on them when she confessed.” Marlon looked surprised, but Louis continued. “She even asked me out on a date! We’re seeing a movie tonight!”

“Well, be sure to change your pants.” Marlon motioned to Louis.

Louis looked down at his outfit. “I really need to change this whole look.” He walked towards his dresser, pulling out shirts and pants left and right. His McDonalds’ toys shook, a few getting knocked over in the process. Clothes were flying around the room as Marlon watched his best friend slowly start to freak out. “Marlon! I have _nothing_ to wear! This is my best shirt!” Louis exclaimed, holding up a plain green shirt. 

“I’m sure it will be fine.”

“I don’t know, will it? What if she sees me and changes her mind?” Louis’ face fell.

Marlon walked over, placing a gentle hand on his shoulder. “Louis, it’s going to be okay. She likes you and that won’t change because of your clothes.”

Louis’ face brightened up a bit. “You’re right.”

“Now seriously, Louis, change your pants.”

Clementine waited outside of her house. Looking down at her watch, she realized she had stepped outside a few minutes too early. She looked down at her denim jacket and touched the hat on her head. _This should be fine, right?_ He wouldn’t be disappointed by her usual outfit, would he? _Maybe I should’ve dressed differently._  
She was pulled out of her thoughts when she noticed Louis’ car pull up. He stepped outside of his car, opening the door for her.“Thanks.”

Louis ran over, sliding back into his seat. Clementine could tell that he was nervous. His hands were a bit sweaty, slipping a bit when he turned the wheel. “So, what’s the movie we’re going to?” Louis asked, glancing over at his date.

“It’s some new superhero movie. People say it’s good.”

“Sounds fun.” 

The two continued to talk about random topics here and there until Louis pulled into the parking lot. Walking forward to the ticket booth, he purchased two tickets before running forward to open the door for Clementine. She in turn held it open for him as he walked in.

“Do you want anything?” he asked, gesturing towards the snack stand. 

“Sure, I’ll pay for it though since you already paid for the tickets.” Clementine replied, leading the way to the line. She ended up getting a large popcorn and a Pepsi for herself.

“A shame that they don’t have Coke.”

“That’s the poor man’s version of Pepsi.”

Louis held a hand to his heart, a fake shocked look on his face. “Don’t tell me I like a girl who likes Pepsi.” he said teasingly.

“I can’t believe I like a boy who prefers Coke.” She responded with a playful smile. The two continued to joke while they made their way into the theater. Finding two seats together they sat down, sharing the popcorn as the trailers had just wrapped up and the movie began. The movie was a fun superhero flick, but neither of them seemed to have their full attention on it. Each of them were nervous. Their hands happened to brush against each other from time to time. It was only near the end of the movie that Clem decided to just go for it. Cautiously she moved her hand forward, placing it on top of Louis’. He seemed shocked for a second before intertwining his hand with hers. The two looked at each other with a smile before turning their attention back to the film. After a while the film was over and the two walked out hand in hand, discussing their favorite parts all throughout their way home. Before they knew it they had arrived back at her house. 

“Well, here we are.” Louis looked a bit sad at his statement.

“Yeah.” Clementine looked over at him, pausing for a second. She suddenly leaned forward, placing a gentle kiss on his cheek. Louis looked back at her with a surprised look, a small blush forming on his face. Clementine felt her own face heating up too. “I can’t wait till next time.”

“I can’t either.” Louis replied with a shy smile. With that, Clementine got out of the car. 

“I’ll see you tomorrow then.”

“See you tomorrow.” The car door shut behind her. Louis watched as she made her way back into her house. A huge smile overtook his face. He couldn’t believe it.

There was going to be a next time.


	15. Time Moves Forward

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Prisha continues to grow closer to Clem and the rest even though the investigation is grinding to a halt.

“And that’s when I realized that cantaloupe was indeed the bane of my existence.” Louis’ voice declared as he walked alongside Clem, Brody and Violet. 

Violet rolled her eyes. “Really? Cantaloupe?” 

“It truly is the most disgusting food known to mankind.” Louis remarked, glancing at his friend.

“I wouldn’t go that far.” Brody added with a smile. Violet was going to comment again on the stupidity of Louis’ banned food choice when she noticed Prisha sitting alone at a nearby table. Without giving the others any sort of heads up, she headed over to her.

“Hey.” Her voice drew Prisha’s attention away from her book. “If you want you can join us. We’re heading out to grab some food.”

Prisha looked at her for a moment before placing away her book. “Sure, I’d like that,” 

Violet smiled for a second, glad that she had agreed before the two of them ran over to the others.

“Hey, Prisha! Are you here to join us in a feast?” Louis asked excitedly.

“By feast he means cafeteria food.” Clementine leaned forward to talk with her.

“Sounds good to me.” Prisha replied as she walked alonside them. The group continued to walk forward, talking about different types of food that they’d rather throw into a volcano than take a bite of. Prisha laughed at some of the answers which made Violet look up at her. At first she thought that Prisha was a jerk, but after realizing her intentions behind the confrontation and the week that she had spent with Violet and her friends Violet had come to realize that she was actually a really good person that just happened to come off too strong sometimes. She turned her attention back to the conversation, rolling her eyes once again as Louis continued on his tirade against cantaloupe. 

\----

 _I’m so fucking doomed._ Violet let out an annoyed groan, tossing her copy of _Nicomachean Ethics_ onto the table in front of her. She had tried her hardest, she really had, but these philosophy books always seemed to be a struggle to understand. It was important that she do well on this paper though; her grades had taken a hit during the weeks after Amelia’s death. Although before that she was never an A student in that class either. Louis and Clementine were in English class right now so she couldn’t ask for their help.  
“  
Violet?” Prisha’s voice appeared next to her. Violet glanced up, her eyes widening slightly to see Prisha right by her. 

“Prisha, hey.”

“What are you up to?”

“Trying to write a paper for my philosophy class, but this book doesn’t make any sense to me.” Violet gestured to her dogeared, beaten up copy of the book.

Prisha walked over, picking up the book, a surprised look on her face.“Nicomachean Ethics.” Her eyes lit up a bit. “ I remember reading this; it’s actually a fascinating read. If you want, I can help you.”

Violet looked up, surprised by the offer before she looked away. “You don’t need to do that. I’m sure you’re busy.” 

“I can make time for this.” Prisha replied, sitting down across from Violet.

Violet’s gaze turned up upwards once more. “OK.”

“Alright, so first of all this is all about asking the philosophical question about the nature of what is a good life for a human being. Aristotle believed that humans all strive for this ultimate good through their actions. At the end of the day humans all strive for one thing: happiness.” Prisha began her explanation of the book. Violet was quickly jotting down notes as she spoke. “Does that make sense?”

“Yeah.”

“Okay, so in the book it talks about eleven virtues. Those being courage, temperance, generosity, magnificence, magnanimity, right ambition, good temper, friendliness, truthfulness, wit and justice.” Prisha leaned forward, looking towards the notes being taken. “Each virtue is good to have, but Aristotle argues that having too much or too little of one is bad.”

Violet looked confused by the statement. Prisha noticed that and jumped in with an example. 

“Take courage. If you have too much it can turn to folly, but if you have too little it turns into cowardice.”

“That makes sense.” Violet leaned back in her chair. The two continued talking about the book, making progress towards the end goal. Once they were done Prisha stood up, stretching her arms as she yawned.

“Thanks. I’m pretty shitty at this sort of stuff.” Violet got up to her feet, placing the book in her bag. 

“No problem, glad I could help.” Prisha gave a warm smile. “I should get going though. Clementine and I may have a lead on our side of the investigation.”

“Ok. See you later then.” Violet gave a quick wave before disappearing into a building. Prisha watched her for a minute before turning to go her own way.

\----

Clementine let out a tired yawn. Hopefully today they would make some headway in the investigation. Not only was it disheartening to get nowhere in terms of evidence because it could mean someone else would suffer, but it was also draining the little energy Clementine had left to give. 

“Hey, sorry, I was helping someone and I got distracted and didn’t notice the time.” Prisha slid into the seat across from her, placing her bag on the floor. “Have you been waiting long?”

Clementine shook her head. “No, I just got here myself. So what trail are we following today?”

Prisha pulled out her computer. “It’s of a student from a university Professor Weathers taught at before coming here. Rumors seemed to spread around that case as well, though it soon got snuffed out.”

Clementine stretched her arms, cracking her fingers in the progress. “Okay, let’s get started.” 

After nearly an hour of work the two had made no real progress to speak of. The trail had turned out to be another dead end. There was nothing they could use to prove Professor Weathers’ guilt if she had done it. Clementine leaned back in her chair, a heavy sigh escaping her lips. Prisha looked over, concerned but also curious why she was taking this so hard. 

“Clem, could I ask you a question?”

Clementine glanced over at Prisha with a tired expression. “Sure.”

“Why do you care so much about these cases? Proving her guilt if she is even guilty to begin with.” Prisha asked, studying Clementine’s face closely.

Clementine sat up straight, her face twisted in concentration. “If I can help someone, even if the chance is small, I’m going to do it. I can’t just stand by and not do anything. I don’t want someone else to die while I have a chance to help.”

Prisha seemed surprised by her answer.“Most people would hear the news about the student dying, give their condolences and then move on with their lives but you didn’t. None of you did.” 

Clementine gave a good-hearted chuckle. “Well you’re no different from us, Prisha. You’re here right alongside of us, following a trail that seems pointless. Why?”

Prisha looked down at the table trying to collect her thoughts. “I suppose I was surprised by you and your friends. When I heard the news of Kenzie’s death I couldn’t believe that it had come to that, but it was really the fact that you offered that led me to accept. Now that I have seen how determined you are to find the truth… it’s inspiring. I keep feeling the desire to find answers too and getting frustrated when they don’t appear.”

Clementine smiled at her words. “You have a compassionate heart, Prisha.” 

“I could say the same for you and the others.” Prisha gave a warm smile. 

This group sure was unusual; they didn’t seem like they would all be friends and get along so well but here they were accepting each other so freely. Accepting her so willingly. Working and struggling to try and help people in need. Prisha watched as Clementine jumped right back into the investigation, a newfound determination on her face. They really were unusual.

\----

Violet couldn’t believe how long it had been since she had hung out with Sophie and Minnie. With three very different schedules it was always a challenge to find some time, but they had finally found it and she was going to seize the opportunity. Meeting up at their usual table, she noticed that the twins were already there. A drink on the opposite side already waited for her. 

“Hey.” Violet sat down, taking a sip of her tea.

“Hey,” Sophie replied with a bright smile on her face. “Haven’t seen you in a few weeks.”

“Been really busy.” Violet responded, looking at the two of them. Sophie still looked like her usual bright self, but Minnie looked more worn out. Bags were starting to form under her eyes; her   
attention to the conversation was somewhat lacking.

“You doing okay?” Minnie asked. “A couple weeks there you seemed…. different.”

“I’m fine.” Violet mumbled. “Are you doing okay?”

“I’m okay, semester’s just kicking my ass but nothing I can’t handle.” Minnie gave a reassuring smile that seemed mainly for her sister who looked concerned at her state.

“You look like shit.”

“Ha, thanks Vi.” Minnie took another sip from her coffee. “So, anything new happening in your life?”

“Not really.”

“Oh, what about that crush?” Sophie asked, an excited expression on her face. Violet looked up. It took her a minute to remember that Sophie had picked up on it last time. 

“Oh, nothing happened.” Violet mumbled, looking down at the ground. She had given up on it for a while now. Besides, any lingering hope was destroyed when Louis had gushed about his date with Clem. She didn’t know what she expected. She turned her gaze to the side, noticing Prisha as she walked by. She seemed to have noticed Violet as well. A bright smile appeared on her face. She gave a quick wave to Violet who returned it. Sophie looked over at Prisha. A playful smile appeared on her face. 

“Oh, is that her?’

Violet’s eyes widened while she looked over at the twins. “What? No.”

The sisters looked at each other, unconvinced by Violet’s words.

“Come on Vi, we’ve known you for years.” Sophie leaned back in her chair, her arms placed behind her head. 

“It’s nothing.” Violet looked away.

“Whatever you say.” Minnie replied while glancing down at her phone. “Shit, practice is soon. I gotta go.”

“Ok, be careful, make sure to drink lots of water!” Sophie called out to her sister who waved in response.Turning back to Violet, she looked sad for a moment before her usually bright smile appeared on her face. “I have the funniest story to tell you that happened in art class today.” She began the story, dramatically retelling it with wild arm gestures but her story faded from Violet’s ears. She was glad that Sophie had dropped the topic of crushes pretty quickly, but still, were they right? She glanced over at where Prisha once was. Did she really feel that way about her?

\----

Clementine felt her shoulders relax when her back hit the bed. It had been such an exhausting day with nothing to show for all her efforts. Closing her eyes, she hoped that sleep would overtake her quickly and this day would finally be over. She should’ve known better though: even in her dreams she would never be fully at peace. Not when she could be summoned to The Velvet Room at any time. The surreal blue consumed her vision and the courtroom appeared before her. The attendee missing from last time stood beside her. It was clear from the air around him that he wasn’t happy. 

“Ah, welcome back.” Igor’s bloodshot eyes looked at her, his hand extended.

“Why was I brought here this time?” Clementine asked, crossing her arms.

James shot her an annoyed look. “Congratulations on defeating your first of many malums.” he whispered to her. He soon noticed her confused expression. Letting out a sigh, he went into his explanation. When you entered that rift covered in red light, that was a malum. Only people with truly distorted hearts bear them. Facing off their owners in the Malum Profana causes them to dissolve, leaving their owners in a dazed state.”

 _That’s why the Saint John Killers weren’t resisting arrest when the sheriff found them._ Clementine thought back to the news that played the day after their battle with the serial killers.

“Why didn’t you use your Wildcard ability?” James’ question was met with another bewildered look. 

“You as the wildcard hold the power of many personas.” Igor’s voice called out with a matter-of-fact tone. 

“If you knew of this ability, it would’ve saved you a lot of trouble. It may even have helped ensure that you don’t slip up again.” James whispered angrily.

“Again?” she asked. It only took a moment to realize what he must have meant. Was he blaming Amelia’s death on her? Was that why he was upset? 

Suddenly her persona appeared before her. Ma’at’s commanding presence drew in her attention.

“Feel it in your heart, the presence of the personas thanks to your bonds.” James instructed beside her. Clementien felt a surge of power rush through her veins, an overwhelming strength coming from within her heart. With a flick of her wrist she called away Ma’at, summoning another persona: a girl in a red and white japanese kimono. She covered her mouth with one of the silk sleeves. Her long black hair laid elegantly across her back while a golden hair ornament was displayed prominently on her head in front of her hairdo.

Clementine stared in awe, looking down at her hand. 

“My name is Kikuri-Hime of the High Priestess Arcana. I will be at your beck and call.”

With that the persona vanished, leaving the room empty once more.

“If you use it wisely, it should turn the tide in battle.” James gave a small smile.

“There will be more battles?” Clementine already felt this to be true, but she’d hoped it wouldn’t prove to be. Her friends had already been through enough.

“Your journey will take you through hardships and losses.” James looked down, pausing at his own words. “But the master and I will continue to help you.”

“But there are no rifts.”

“With our help, you shall be able to see them.” Igor stated with his usual unnerving smile.

A map of the campus suddenly appeared in Clementine’s hands. 

“I look forward to your continual walk down the path of destiny.” With Igor’s final words she woke up back in the real world. The campus map was clutched in her hand. She angrily tossed it across her room. _Of course they didn’t tell me how that map was useful._

\----

Violet felt her head spinning as she continued to be consumed by the thought planted by the twins. There was no way she was developing a crush on Prisha, was there? She looked over at Prisha who was rereading a chapter to refresh her memory on the subject. Violet shook her head. She should just focus on the assignment, but for some reason she couldn’t stop staring at Prisha’s brown eyes. _Shit._ Violet reached for her tea. It was still pretty hot. Slowly she leaned it back, her eyes still on Prisha. When suddenly Prisha looked up from across the book. Violet panicked, pushing the cup farther back, burning her lip in the process. Wincing, she slammed down the cup.

“Ow, shit.” she reached up, delicately touching her lip. 

“Violet, are you okay?” Prisha asked with concern, placing down the book. Violet waved a hand dismissively.

“I’m fine. Let’s just focus on the paper.”

“Okay, well, the chapter was pretty much how I remember it. Aristotle talks about three types of friendship: ones that are based on usefulness, ones that are based on pleasure and ones that are of virtue. He argues that friendships based on usefulness and pleasure won’t last and that virtue really is the only valid one since both friends want what’s best for the other and aren’t using each other for personal gain.” 

Violet nodded, jotting down a couple notes here and there before looking at her phone. “Shit, shit, shit.” She jumped up to her feet. “I totally forgot I was meeting with Professor Walter about another assignment.” Her face fell; she really wanted to spend more time with Prisha. “Sorry.”

“Don’t be. We can always pick up where we left off next time.” Prisha replied with a reasurring smile. Violet gave a small smile before sprinting off. 

Prisha was left alone with her thoughts. She had moved something to make time for this. She stared up at the sky. _Friendship of virtue. That really does fit them._  
She really had enjoyed these two weeks with the four of them. But she knew as soon as the investigation was done they would move on with their lives and she would go back to hers. It was selfish of her to be thankful that they hadn’t found anything so far in the search into Professor Weathers’ past. She was so caught up in the connection she made with them when she should be focusing on the task at hand. Her eyes fell onto the path that Violet had taken.

 _Even if all ties to them are cut after this, I can’t let go of these feelings._ As soon as the investigation was done, she would do it. She would get up the courage she needed to tell Violet how she felt.


	16. The Disheartened Scholar

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Clementine tries to figure out the gift given to her by Igor when all of the sudden a blue dot appears on the map.

Clementine looked deeply at the campus map laid out on the table in front of her. Her face scrunched up in concentration as she tried to figure out what it could possibly do.

“Any luck?” Violet asked from across the table. From her expression it was clear that she was worried about Clementine. Clementine let out a frustrated groan, leaning back in her chair and grabbing her head with her hands. 

“I don’t know what I thought would happen if I looked at it. How the hell am I supposed to figure out how this map works?” She leaned forward and tossed the map to the side.

“I’m back!” Brody’s cheerful voice rang out from across the lawn. In her hands were two bags filled with snacks and drinks. 

“Thanks, Brody.” Clementine gave a thankful smile, opening up the drink and taking a long sip from it.

“I don’t know why you go over to the convenience store when there’s vending machines all around campus.” Violet commented, grabbing her share of the goods.

“I don’t mind walking over. Plus I think it’s good to support local business.” 

Violet looked unconvinced by the answer; it didn’t help that Brody seemed a bit too happy about the statement.

The sound of a bottle slamming against the table and the crinkle of paper made Violet and Brody look up to see their friend attempt once again to figure out the cryptic gift left to her. They sat in silence, the only sound filling the air being the swishing of drinks and crunching of snacks. 

“Hey guys,” Louis exclaimed before realizing what was happening and quieting down. He looked over with concern. Clementine looked tired, frustration building inside her as she continued to stare at the map. Suddenly she took the map and crumbled it up, her hands shaking while she pressed all of her anger into her task. Tossing it into the nearest trash can, she turned back to see her friends’ shocked faces. 

“Don’t worry. It’s fine. It always reappears in my bag no matter how many times I try to get rid of it.” 

Louis walked over, sliding next to Clementine. He put a comforting hand on her shoulder. “It’s going to be okay, Clem, we’ll figure it out.” His voice was soft and calm which seemed to help Clementine recenter herself. Taking a deep breath she looked back to her friends then to Louis.

“Sorry.”

“Don’t be.” Brody replied with a reassuring smile. “We’re going to figure this out together.”

Violet gave a nod in agreement. Her attention was soon drawn away though as she felt her phone buzz. Glancing down at it, a small smile appeared on her face for a brief moment.  
“I have to go. I need to work on that paper on _Nicomachean Ethics._ ”

“Oh shit, I need to work on that too.” Louis let out a groan. “You’re getting help, right? Do you think they’d help me too?”

Violet looked away, swinging her backpack over her shoulder. “No. I’ll see you guys later.”

Louis’ face fell a bit.

“I can help.” Clementine offered, which made Louis’ face brighten.

“Thanks.”

She turned her attention to the trash where she threw the map. _Now if only I could figure that out._

\----  
Why did The Velvet Room and its residents have to be so vague? The map once again laid open in front of her but nothing was different. It looked just like an ordinary campus map; the only distinction it had from ones that were handed out during orientation was a small map of the area on the back. Her eyes start to blur the map due to her concentration. She needed to take a break. Glancing up, she noticed for the first time that Brody and Violet were sitting across from her.

“How long have you been there?”  
“Fifteen minutes,” Brody responded. “I think you should take a break. Maybe if we talk about something else that would help. So, how are classes going?”

“I’ve been able to keep up with the work, which is good. I just hope that my grades aren’t slipping at all.” Clementine answered, stretching out her arms in front of her. “That _Nicomachean Ethics_ paper was tough, but I managed to produce something I’m pretty proud of."

“Yeah, philosophy papers are alway a pain in the ass, but I think I actually might get a good grade on this one.” Violet’s face had a proud smile on it.

“That’s good. I actually got some praise from my psychology professor the other day.” Brody added to which the other girls smiled, proud of her accomplishment.

“That’s great, Brody!” Clementine paused when she saw Louis running up towards them. He ran a bit too fast, unable to stop before passing by the table.

“I saw Beans running across campus!” he exclaimed through wheezes.

Violet looked up at her friend with annoyance. “Louis, I swear to God if this is one of your lameass jokes...”

“No, no, no. I’m talking about a person. I call him Beans because one time in the cafeteria I saw him eat beans out of a _cup_ with a _knife!_ ” Louis shook his head to snap   
himself back to his original statement. “That’s not important right now. I think he may be in danger! The way he was acting…. It reminded me of the others.”

The group froze at those words. Clementine was about to respond when she noticed out of the corner of her eye a glowing blue dot. Looking closer, she saw it came from the campus map. That blue light. It seemed eerily familiar. “I think I may know where he is.” 

The others looked shocked before picking up on what was displayed on the map. 

“Let’s go.” Brody snatched her bag and soon the rest followed. Clementine led the way, making their way towards the I Building. There standing as plain as day was a rift. Brody felt a shiver run down her spine. This is what it looked like? Its presence felt as though it demanded her attention. 

“Everyone ready?” Clementine looked back at her friends. Each nodded, their bodies already tense from the appearance of the rift. With their confirmation she took a step forward . The rift swallowed them up once again. The almost nostalgic feeling of their stomachs twisting whenever they entered a rift consumed them. It took them a moment to readjust to this new area. Whoever ‘Beans’ was, this must be his sanctum. They stood in a large room. Two bookshelves were placed against the walls, filled to the brim with books on multiple subjects. The walls to the left and right of the shelves displayed countless achievements, mainly academic. A few of which were crooked and slowly falling off the nails which held them. 

“What’s this?” Louis asked. His hand reached out to a pedestal in the middle that held some sort of book. Its corners were burnt and its pages yellow with age. The name Aasim was displayed proudly across the front cover. 

“Don’t touch that,” Violet hissed, pulling his hand back. “We have no idea what could happen if you mess with it.”

“Okay, okay, geez Vi, calm down.” Louis grabbed his arm back.

“Hey, that corridor there.” Brody pointed in between the bookshelves. The others followed her finger. 

“Shit.” Clementine mumbled. She walked forward towards the door that stood at the end, the familiar sigil embedded in the doorknob. A wave of emotion hit her like a brick, causing her to stumble back. The others were soon by her side, each feeling the same emotion. Its very nature filled them with a sickening, disheartening feeling. Louis and Violet tried to explain to Brody the process of this.

“It’s going to be okay. We’re just feeling whatever he’s feeling.” Louis tried to give a reassuring smile.

“So you felt this when you entered my sanctum?” Brody asked, sliding down onto the floor.

“Not exactly,” Violet sat beside her. “Everyone’s is different.”

Louis soon joined them. “The most we can do is wait though. Right, Clem?”

Clementine glanced over at her friends before returning her gaze to the door. “That’s right.”

\----

Aasim felt his heart pound as he looked around the nearly bare room. It only had a single table and two chairs. _Maybe it would be good to sit down._ Perhaps taking a moment to collect his thoughts would help him figure out how to escape this place he stumbled into. He wasn’t even sure exactly how he ended up here. Looking up, his eyes widened. _What the hell!?!_ He fell back, his chair crashing to the ground behind him. There standing by the far wall was a person who looked identical to him.

“You’re here.” It stated, looking annoyed by his presence.

“Who…” Aasim’s voice faded out. His mind was trying to process the information in front of him.

“I am you and you are me.” It looked disgusted by its own response, not moving a single step closer to him. Aasim scrambled to his feet, moving back against the other wall. 

“That’s not possible.” his voice shook in disbelief.

“It is. Every single thing that you’ve done, all your accomplishments…” the construct shifted its weight, staring directly into his eyes. “Every failure, I know them all. 

“You-”

“I don’t even know why you keep trying.” 

Aasim paused at those words.

“You make all these plans, try to account for every possible thing and yet it's hopeless. You still fail.” the construct looked at him with disdain. Suddenly its voice changed to one Aasim hoped he wouldn’t have to hear anytime soon. “I don’t need you anymore. From here on I’ll take over the thesis. This is _my_ work and if you say anything to the contrary, I’ll deny it.”   
Professor Weathers’ voice made his head spin. What was going on?“You’ve failed,” the construct spat, venom in its voice. “And because of it you’ll lose everything. All that you work for will be gone in an instant. You’ll become worthless, useless now that you’ve realized you’ve accomplished nothing.”

Aasim felt his heart drop at those words. Were they true? All his work that he did for Professor Weathers was fruitless. She would take all the credit and he would be left with nothing, powerless to do anything to stop her. 

The construct moved away from the wall for the first time, slamming down a contract on the table. “Face the facts: you have failed and will continue to do so,” Its eyes were filled with hate. “You don’t have it in you to succeed.”  
Aasim’s eyes fell upon the contract. _Am I doomed to fail?_ Were all his efforts, all the hours he had thrown into trying to succeed pointless?  
He felt his legs shake; the construct’s words were getting to him. He walked over to the contract, staring at its contents. Would this really help in any way? He reached for the pen before stopping.   
If he signed this, he was resigning himself to the fact that he was a failure and would never amount to anything more. He pulled away his hand. No, he couldn’t accept that. 

“Success...” Aasim looked over at the construct, “Isn’t measured by failure.” He walked forward, standing before the construct who glared at him. “It's measured by resolve, and I will never give up!” Aasim’s eyes burned with determination. 

The construct stepped back, clutching its chest. Soon it was enveloped with a white light that seemed to cause cracks to form around its body. “You’re a failure!” the construct hissed. “You’ll amount to nothing more.”The cracks spread even further along its body before it blew up . Aasim backed away, shocked by what had just happened. When he tried to take a deep breath to recenter himself he felt an immediate pain enter his heart. It felt like it was being torn apart, pierced by a burning knife. He clutched onto his shirt desperately, his eyes watering at the pain. A surge of pain shot through his hand, a burning sensation overwhelming it. He looked at it with fear while his other hand clutched his head, pulling at his hair. He wanted it to stop. He was begging it to and then just like that it did. He fell to his knees, trying to regain his composure when he noticed someone standing where his imposter once did. 

It was a person sitting cross-legged, hovering in the air. Its body was draped in black and gold robes, the ends of which swayed in the air. In its lap lay an open book, the pages of which dripped slowly as the ink ran down, covering the being’s hands. “You’ve awakened.” It stated, glancing up at Aasim and studying his face closely before returning to the book. “I am Aurelius. I cannot wait to see your potential.” 

_I am thou, thou art I.  
By casting away the falsehoods placed within your heart and opening your eyes to the truth,  
I have come from the depths of your soul  
to help in your pursuit of justice._

With that the being turned into a ball of light, disappearing into his heart. Aasim wasn’t sure what just happened. Suddenly the door squeaked open. Four people that he had never seen before stood in the doorway. For some reason they all looked relieved to see him. 

“I’m sure you’re wondering who we are and what’s going on.” the girl in a denim leather jacket spoke to him, making her way forward. “If you want, we can talk. I’m Clementine.” She extended her hand towards him which he looked at for a second before shaking. 

“Aasim.”

The people behind her looked happy at his decision. 

Clementine froze when she heard James’ voice once again. 

_I am thou, thou art I  
Thou hast acquired a new bond  
It shall become the voice of justice  
That soothes thine anguish from oppression. _

_With the birth of the Hierophant Persona,  
One of tradition and beliefs  
I have obtained the tongue of truth  
That shall lead to balance and new power._

She looked towards the young man before her. _He looks like he’s capable._ She looked closer at his eyes, filled with intrigue and curiosity. _He definitely has a level head on his shoulders._ That was the vibe he was giving at least.“Oh, I should introduce you to the others,” Clementine gestured to them. “The one on the far left is Brody,” Brody gave a friendly wave. “Next to her is Louis.” He gave a huge grin. “And lastly there’s Violet.” Violet looked up, her arms crossed, giving a quick nod.

“Hello.” Aasim gave a small smile. 

“We should get out of here first.” Clementine instructed.

“But how are we going to do that?” Aasim asked, raising an eyebrow. 

“Just wait.” Violet replied.

After a few minutes the room started to melt around them and they were soon back in reality, the I building standing right in front of them. 

“Come on,” Clementine led the way to a secluded area of campus. The group followed behind. She waited a few minutes for everyone to get settled before she started her long explanation of what happened.

“That was my heart?” Aasim’s eyes widened in shock.

“I know! It’s crazy, right?” Louis commented, leaning forward. “But it’s true."

Aasim turned his attention to his bag, pulled out a notebook and started to write something down.

“What are you doing?” Brody asked. Aasim glanced up, pausing in his note taking. 

“I’m writing all this down. It's a lot to remember. I’m sure you guys were the same when you learned about your powers and the persona world.”

The group looked at each other. “We’ve actually never written down this stuff.” Clementine shifted her weight, embarrassed that she hadn’t thought of that. 

“Really? Well then, it’s a good thing I’m here. “ Aasim replied with a smirk before continuing his notes. “Is there anything else I should know?”

Clementine put a hand to her chin, thinking deeply for a moment. “I think that’s all the important stuff. I could tell you other things like people's arcanas, but I’m not sure how relevant it is.”

“Arcanas?” Violet looked over with confusion.

“Like with tarot cards?” Brody added.

“Yeah. Each arcana seems to be linked to you based on similar traits you have to that arcana.” Clementine replied, leaning her hands back on the grass. 

“So, what’s mine?” Louis asked, excitement coursing through his words.

“The Lovers.”

Violet let out a snort. 

“What kind of response is that, Vi?” Louis huffed before a proud smile covered his face. “I think it’s pretty on point.”

That caused Violet to roll her eyes. 

“Brody’s is The High Priestess.” Brody seemed a bit shocked by that, clearly thinking she didn’t deserve one that sounded that regal. 

“Violet is The Moon.”

Louis let out a gasp. “You’re kidding.” He fell back dramatically. “All this time I could’ve been making Sailor Moon references!”

“What the hell is Sailor Moon?” Violet asked. Brody and Louis’ faces fell in shock.

“You don’t know Sailor Moon?” Brody couldn’t believe it.

“No, what is it?”

“Just one of the greatest shows of all time.” Louis responded. Suddenly he shot back up. “Violet! My dear friend who I love, will you do me a favor?” Louis with a playful smile.

“No.”

“You didn’t even hear me out.” 

Violet looked over at him before letting out an annoyed sigh. “Fine. What’s the request?”

“Next time we face off against shadows can you say, ‘In the name of the moon, I’ll punish you’?” He dramatically struck the iconic pose from _Sailor Moon._ Brody let out a tiny gasp, excited by his proposal.

“No.” The look on Violet’s face made it clear it was non-negotiable.

“Anyway...” Clementine steered the conversation back on the topic she was curious about. “Aasim, why were you running towards the I Building today?”

Aasim’s face grew somber. “You know that rumour that spread about that student who died, Kenzie Ross? It was true. Rebecca is a plagiarist. She’s stolen before and she’s doing it again,”

“Rebecca?”

“Weathers. I refuse to call her a professor when she is the farthest thing from it.”

“How do you know the rumour is true?” Violet asked.

“Because I was her latest victim.” Aasim’s words caused the others to pause, shocked by the revelation. “The thesis I spent countless hours on was for nothing. As soon as I was done she kicked me off the assignment. Probably to claim all of the praise for herself. “ His voice was heavy with anger. 

“Holy shit,” Louis whispered. “The rumours were true.”

Aasim paused unsure, if he should say the next part. 

“Ask.” he looked up at Clementine who seemed to have picked up on his inner struggle. 

“I want to ask for your help. You said you use the power of personas to help people in need and take down those who oppress them. I want to take down Rebecca.”

The group couldn’t believe what they were hearing. A moment of silence passed over them as Clementine looked for confirmation from each of them. It looked like the team would come back together once again. Turning her attention back to Aasim, she looked him in the eyes. “Welcome to the team.”


	17. Restoring Balance

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Clementine and the others come up with a plan that they hope will open up Rebecca's malum.

The group stared at the map in front of them. Clementine had called them together because she said she had a plan that may work for opening Professor Weathers’ malum.

“So I was up late last night trying to think about a plan that may work,” Clementine paused when she saw everyone’s concerned looks.“I’m fine guys, really. Louis, Violet, do you remember where we found the malum for the Saint John Killers?”

“I think it was some warehouse.” Louis tried to recall it, his face scrunched in concentration. 

“It was by the docks where they kept their victims and where we found Louis. Those assholes.” Violet hissed, angry at past memories.

“Right, it was an important location to them and when they had taken Louis...” Clementine’s voice caught slightly at those words, “They panicked and were sloppier than usual. Now think back to the rifts in each case. Whether it was one of us or one of the victims it was forced open by heightened emotions.”

Aasim’s eyes widened, catching onto Clementine’s plan. “You think that if we cause some emotional distress for Rebecca then her malum will open up. Specifically at a location important to her.”

“That’s right.” Clementine gestured towards the map. “I was hoping that you may have an idea of where that might be.” She looked over at Aasim who was already studying the map. 

“There’s two locations where I’m guessing a malum could open up. In her office which is located here in Building C or here in Building R across the way where she usually takes her smoke breaks during long work sessions.”

Louis let out a whistle, impressed by the plan so far. 

“We may only get one chance at this,” Clementine warned. “If it goes south, we may have to wait until she takes on another student.”

“Which could lead to another student suffering.” Brody whispered. Everyone paused for a moment at the weight of this mission.

“Ok, so tell us the plan for how we’re opening it.” Violet crossed her arms, focusing on the map before them.

“We’ll need to split up into three teams. One will consist of two people. One of them will have to set up an appointment in her office hours and get access to the place. The other one will wait nearby in case things go wrong. The second team will also be two people. One will make the call that will threaten Professor Weathers and the second one will be keeping lookout. As for the last person they will be on standby in case anything goes sour.” Clementine instructed, pointing out the different locations where the three teams would be.

“Well, I can’t be part of the first one. It will be too suspicious,” Aasim commented. “So I can be on the lookout for the second team.”

“I can set up the office meeting.” Violet mumbled, looking determined even though in her eyes it was clear she was a bit nervous.

“Then I’ll watch Vi’s back.” Louis offered, raising his hand up and giving a warm smile to his partner.

“Alright, then that leaves-”

“I’ll make the call.” Brody spoke up shocking the others. “I can do it.” Her eyes burned with resolve. The others looked at each other before smiling proudly at Brody. They knew that she could do it.

“Ok, then I’ll be on standby and will be waiting for news of your success,” Clementine replied. “As soon as Violet can get an appointment we’re going forward with the plan. Remember to be smart and safe.” 

With that the meeting was over and the group went their separate ways, determined to see this thing through. But an underlying wave of nerves filled their stomachs. 

\----

It was a few days later when Violet let them know that she had gotten an appointment. Each team reviewed their set of actions with the group.

“Ok, everything set. Let’s kick Professor Weathers’ ass!” Clementine exclaimed. She shot her hand forward in the middle of the group. One by one they each put their hands in the middle on top of each other. 

“Go team!” Louis shouted, instantly disappointed that they hadn’t come up with a team name yet, but he quickly shook that off and went with Violet to their destination. Brody and Aasim went with them for the time being until they saw their location.

“Good luck.” Brody waved to them while she ran into the building with Aasim. 

Violet and Louis waved back before making their way into their own building. Soon they were both standing in front of her office. Violet stared at the door, the pressure of the situation getting to her. What if she messed this up? If she did it would ruin everything and then someone else could get hurt. Her thoughts were spinning out of control. Suddenly a gentle hand appeared on her shoulder.

“You got this, Violet. I’ll be right down the hall, okay?” Louis said with a reassuring smile on his face. 

“Okay.” She pulled open the door, entering the office. “Umm, hello?”

“In here.” a voice called out from the desk. Violet made her way further into the office, stopping by the chair.

“I’m here for an appointment,” Violet swore internally at her voice cracking.

“I know, sit.” Weathers gestured to the chair. Violet listened, sitting down immediately.

“What did you want to talk about?” The professor didn’t look up at her.

“I want to talk about changing my major to history.” Violet could feel the sweat starting to collect on her back.

“It’s not an easy major, you know. Why change now in your second year?” Her tone made Vi feel on edge. 

“I thought history was cool and shit…” Violet paused to buy herself some more time to think up a believable story and not this half-assed one that she had concocted. _Come on Brody, hurry up._

“You’re not serious about it.” The professor’s words hung in the air, surrounded by silence.

 _Shit, I’m messing up._ Violet felt her heart race, her mind spinning as it tried to regain control of the situation. 

Suddenly Professor Weathers’ cell phone rang. She immediately picked it up. “Hello.” There was an awkward silence for a few seconds before her face hardened. She stood up abruptly. “Wait here.” she instructed Violet who simply nodded. Even though Weathers was outside her office, Violet could still hear her voice.“Listen, I don’t know what the hell you’re talking about, but if you don’t drop this I will have to-” she was cut off by the person on the other line.“No one and I mean no one talks to me like that!” Violet heard the professor’s footsteps growing fainter and fainter. 

Suddenly the doorknob jiggled. “Vi, it’s me.” Louis whispered. She slowly made her way to the door, opening it for Louis who shut it behind him before looking back at his friend. “You’re okay?” 

“Yeah.”

“Has a malum appeared yet?”

“No, not y-” she stopped when she saw Louis’ shocked expression. Glancing back, she saw the sickening red glow through the rift hovering by Weathers’ desk.

“Holy shit, it worked.” Louis murmured. Taking out his cellphone he sent a quick text to the others, hoping that they would show up in time before the professor came back.

\----

Clementine couldn’t help but feel anxious. Here she was the leader of this newly formed team waiting on standby while her team did the risky parts for the first phase of the mission. It wasn’t that she did believe in them. She knew they could do it; she just wished she could help out. _Can’t focus on the negatives._ Clementine took out her books, pulling out an assignment for one of the classes. Maybe if she focused on something else that would help her not be so worried. Just as she was about to start, she heard a familiar voice.

“Hi, Clem,” 

Looking up, she saw Prisha.“Hey, Prisha.”

“Mind if I join you?”

“Not at all,” Clementine gestured to the seat across from her with a smile.

Prisha sat down, looking at Clementine’s work with curiosity. Clementine noticed this and decided it would be best to start up a conversation.

“Been so busy with everything, I forgot to work on some of my assignments.”

The two sat in silence for a moment.

“I’m sorry, Clementine.” Prisha’s words drew her attention.

“What for?”

“You asked for my help with the investigation and here we are two weeks into it and it feels like we’ve found nothing. I can’t help but feel responsible,” Prisha’s face fell, a mixture of frustration and sadness on it. 

“It’s not your fault, Prisha. This investigation has just turned out more difficult than we originally anticipated, but I’m sure we’ll catch a break soon.”

Prisha was surprised by Clementine’s optimism. “How can you be so positive?”

Clementine placed down her pencil, thinking deeply for a moment before responding. “I think it because of the others. Having people alongside you that you can rely on and lean on helps make impossible situations more possible. I’m able to have hope because of them, and they know they can count on the same from me.” A warm smile played on her lips at her own words.

Prisha looked shocked once again. Before she could respond to that, Clementine’s phone buzzed on the table. Picking it up she stood up, snatching her books and putting them back in her bag.   
“Sorry Prisha, I have to go. Louis needs me for something.” Flinging her backpack on, Clementine paused by her friend. “Don’t beat yourself up, Prisha.” With that she ran off in the direction of the C Building, adrenaline rushing through her veins with each new step. They were going to end this. They were going to stop Professor Weathers.

It only took a few minutes for everyone to show up, the five of them standing in front of the malum.

“Everyone ready?”

“Ready as we’ll ever be.” Brody whispered. Taking a step forward, the team was enveloped by the rift, thrown once again into a twisted place. It took a moment for everyone to regain their center. Staring around they noticed that they were in an octagonal room. Eight mirrors stood on the walls. The entrance to the malum still stayed, blocked by an invisible barrier. Brody and Aasim seemed overwhelmed by this new location. A feeling of greed crashed over the team, making all of them shaken.

“Everyone, be on your guard. Who knows when a shadow may appear. Remember to keep your distance and everything should be fine.” Clementine’s words seemed to calm them, but it didn’t last long. All of the sudden a student appeared in one of the mirrors. It only took a second for Clementine to recognize him. He was one of the rumored victims from Professor Weathers’ past.

“Everything should be given to her.” his voice rang out through the room. His face moved closer to the center of the mirror. Pushing through it, his body fell to the ground. It swayed back and forth as he stood to his feet before he leaned all the way back. A loud cracking noise came from his spine. The unearthly black ooze covered his body as he transformed into a shadow. Brody and Aasim backed away, cautious of the enemy. Slowly Clementine took off her glove, placing it on her heart.

“Persona!” Ma’at appeared behind her, awaiting her first command. But before she could issue it a bolt of lighting hit Clementine’s right arm. Letting out a pained cry she cradled the arm, now burned deeply by the bolt. The team’s eyes widened, looking towards the shadow that had just performed the elemental magic.

“Clem!” Louis ran to her side.

“What the fuck.” Violet whispered in disbelief.

Louis tore off his glove, hitting it against his chest sharply. “Persona!” Liszt appeared immediately, sending a crash of lightning down on the shadow. When the smoke cleared however, it was clear that it had done nothing.“What the hell…” Louis couldn’t believe it. His attack had no effect. 

“Persona!” Violet’s voice cried out. La Guillotine sliced the shadow in one smooth motion. Brody ran forward, using Ophelia to heal the deep wound on Clem’s arm. Within seconds it was back to normal.

“I thought you said shadows only had physical attacks!” Aasim snapped.

“They only had it in the last places we fought!” Violet hissed back.

“We need to focus.” Clementine’s calm voice stopped their fighting. “Every day we’re learning. We just formed this team so there will be bumps. Everyone, surround Brody.”

“What?” Brody asked with confusion.

“You’re our only healer so we’ve got to keep her safe. Louis, Aasim and I will protect her on all sides while Violet leads the charge.” The team quickly agreed to this, changing their formation just in time for the next shadow to show up.

“It’s her name that should receive praise.” the girl cried out, her body convulsing before changing into the oozing form of a shadow. This time it attacked with fire magic.

“Persona!” Aasim slammed his hand against his chest. Aurelius hovered behind him. The pages turned frantically in his book before landing on the right one. The ink slipped off the page, turning the being’s hands into claws. The shadow’s flame attack directly hit Aasim.

“Aasim!” Louis called out.

“I’m fine.” Aasim’s smirk appeared from behind the flames. “Just as I expected. If they attack you with your elemental magic, it won’t hurt you.”With one risky move Aasim had discovered priceless information. Another shadow appeared, wielding ice magic. Aurelius’s claws viciously scratched the air. Flames enveloped the shadow before it crumbled to the floor. The group continued to take out shadow after shadow, blocking elemental magic that they knew wouldn’t hurt them while discovering the different types of magics that were effective against other types. Brody paused suddenly when she recognized the next student. Her brown hair blew slightly as she stared at them. It was Kenzie Ross.

“We deserve nothing.” The cuts that marked her arms started to ooze nasty black goop. Her form slowly changed into that of a shadow. 

Brody felt her heart burn with rage. Without thinking twice she commanded Ophelia.“Bufu!” She thrust her arm out. Ophelia did as she was commanded. The droplets stopped in the air before freezing. Suddenly the collection of ice pierced the shadow, freezing parts of its body bit by bit. Each part shattered when the ice overtook it. It was mere moments before the shadow was defeated. Each team member took deep breaths. They had defeated seven so far; there couldn’t be much more. The mirror that stood by Aasim immediately transformed. The image changed to that of Aasim himself. The shadow version slipped out of the mirror, but before it had time to change Aasim had commanded Aurelius. Red hot flames burned the shadow to ashes. The others looked shocked only for their attention to be drawn away by a corridor appearing.

“Let’s go.” Aasim mumbled. The group sprinted down the hall to only stop seconds later when they entered a small, empty room with a single mirror standing on the wall. The reflection that it held was that of Professor Weathers who looked down at the team with disdain. 

“What the hell are you doing here?” Her voice was filled with annoyance.

“We’re here to stop you!” Louis spat, his body in a defensive stance next to Clementine. 

“Why? I’ve been doing nothing wrong.” Her eyes seemed laser focused on Aasim.

“Nothing wrong? You’ve been fucking up people’s lives!” Violet hissed.

“Please,” Weathers sneered. “If you mean the students, they had nothing at stake when they joined one of my thesis projects. I had my career at stake. I had to look out for myself.” Her words seemed to make the team’s blood boil.

“Their lives were ruined by you!” Brody’s voice cracked with emotion.

“I can’t believe you call yourself a professor, it’s the furthest thing from the truth. You’re just a petty thief.” Aasim’s words were filled with venom as he glared at her. She didn’t seem fazed by it though.

“You don’t know shit. You better choose your next words carefully.” Her tone had a level of warning to it. 

“You,” Clementine’s voice was thick with hatred.The professor’s gaze turned towards her. “You cast aside your student’s concerns like they were nothing. You’re pathetic!”

“You shut your fucking mouth!” Professor Weathers snapped, the mirror she resided in starting to crack. “At the end of the day the students are but stepping stones for me.” The mirror shattered. Slowly the pieces moved forward, forming the silhouette of the professor. The features of the multiple students she had stolen from filled in her own features. Aasim’s eyes appeared in place of hers. “At the end of the day you need to care about just one thing: yourself.”

Aasim bit down on his lip, piercing the skin. “Agi!”Aurelius appeared suddenly, throwing a strong fire attack towards the professor. It seemed to do next to nothing though. Violet ran forward, commanding her persona to slash her down. The professor looked annoyed, sending a wave of flames towards Violet and burning her leg. Violet let out a cry of pain, slipping backwards.

“Violet!” Brody summoned Ophelia. A soft, comforting warmth filled Violet’s leg, healing it instantly. 

“Thanks.” Violet called back, dodging another attack. Brody went on the offensive, sending a deadly ice attack. This attack seemed to hurt the professor greatly; she let out a hiss of pain. Brody sent another one, but this time it did nothing. 

Aasim had a theory as to what was happening. Sending another blaze of flames, he tested it. Just as he guessed, the flames caused her excruciating pain. The team looked at each other, all picking up on her secret. Whatever element was thrown her way she seemed to copy. Which meant that the one effective against that copied element would do significant damage if they hit next. However, whatever element thrown her way would end up being copied by her in turn. Clementine called out to Ma’at, sending several gusts of winds that cut against their enemy. It didn’t do much damage, but that wasn’t the intention. It was to set up for Louis’ attack. Violet continued to dodge attacks as she did the only thing she could: send La Guillotine to send slash after slash at Rebecca in hopes of distracting her. 

“ZIO!” Louis screamed. Liszt slammed down on his piano. A huge thunderbolt consumed their enemy and a painful cry ringed out. Even though they had found her weakness it didn’t make the battle any easier. The four continued to use their magic, sapping their energy bit by bit. Some mistimed attacks caused agonizing hits against different members. Brody tried her best to use both her supportive and offensive magic, but it quickly wearing on her. Clementine picked up on this. It was time she tried out her wild card ability. Backstepping, she placed her hand against her heart. 

“Kikuri-Hime!” She commanded Ma’at to pause, placing her sword and scale together before disappearing, another persona taking her place. A girl hovered in the air, her white and red silk kimono waving in the air. With a flick of her wrist she sent ice magic towards the professor. The different team members paused for a moment, surprised by Clementine’s newly-used ability. Brody seemed to catch on pretty quickly that she should focus on support magic. Giving an appreciative smile to Clementine, she turned her attention back on the battle. The professor took a huge step back, preparing for what looked like a last ditch attempt to win. 

Brody studied her movements carefully. Who was she going to attack? A large wind attack slashed forward. Brody’s eyes fell on Aasim. He was in danger. Using her ice magic, Brody instantly created a shield in front of him. The wind magic shattered it but it still had protected him. She let out a sigh of relief when suddenly two more wind attacks were thrown. One landed directly into Violet’s gut causing her to fall over, the blood slowly seeping from her wound. The other made its way towards Louis.

“Louis!” Clementine cried out, trying to copy Brody’s defense tactic. But she was too late. The attack hit Louis directly across the chest, knocking the air out of him. He wasn’t going to give up though.

“Zio.” he whispered, mustering all his remaining magic into a final devastating blow which hit the enemy, burning her form to a crisp. Rebecca’s body cracked and shattered to reveal her normal form. Reaching out one last time in an attempt to keep fighting, the professor collapsed, fading before them.

“Brody!” Clementine shouted. Brody ran over quickly. Placing herself between her two injured friends, she gathered all her remaining magic to heal them. The wounds on each of them healed, but neither of them seemed in any condition to move. The malum started to crumble around them, the walls crashing down upon them. Clementine swore under her breath as she liifted her boyfriend up, carrying him on her back. Aasim ran towards Violet, lifting her up into his arms. Brody felt the weight under her shift weirdly. She was completely drained. 

“Brody, are you okay?” Clementine asked. She and Aasim looked over in concern. 

“I’m okay. Help the others.” 

With that the team sprinted towards the exit, cradling their friends as they made it towards the rift opening. They barely made it out of there. The three conscious team members caught their breath before looking at Louis and Violet. They were okay; their rhythmic breathing calmed down the others. Brody looked towards the desk and noticed that Professor Weathers was there but she was clearly out of it. 

“We need to leave.” Clementine whispered, leading the others out of the room. They stopped once they had reached a secluded part of campus. Aasim and Clementinegently placed down Louis and Violet. 

“I’ll send the anonymous tip.” Brody offered.

“Make sure to call the campus as well,” Aasim added. “They need to be aware of their mistake of hiring someone like Rebecca.” Brody nodded, running off to leave the tip. It only took a few minutes for her to return.

“I did it.” Brody replied before she felt herself slip into unconsciousness. Aasim and Clementine ran forward, catching her just in time. Placing Brody by the others, Aasim and Clementine sat down beside their friends. Clementine took off her jacket placing it over Louis while Aasim took off his and placed it on Violet to cover their blood-covered shirts. It only took a few more moments before the last two members of the team fell asleep, glad that it was finally over.


	18. A Night Filled With Music and Stars

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Clementine and her friends go to celebrate the arrest of Professor Weathers.

It had been a few days since they had defeated Professor Weathers. The fight in the malum had taken its toll on the team, each of them exhausted from the fight. The days afterwards were always a mixed bag. On the one hand the person they were trying to stop would face justice, but on the other hand it drained them. Clementine wondered if they struggled like she did the following nights after a malum fight, the nightmares waking her as the things she had seen were burned in her brain. 

Clementine decided not to focus on that and instead focus on the positive, especially today. As soon as the news had revealed that they were successful with their mission, the group had made a unanimous decision to celebrate. Louis had suggested karaoke which was met with some unsure responses but soon everyone agreed. They were planning to meet up later today after their classes were finished for the day. With the promise of a fun evening with friends Clementine got up from bed, putting on her usual outfit, grabbing a quick bite to eat and then heading to class. The classes that day were nothing memorable, at least not to Clementine. Her mind was preoccupied today. Before she knew it the classes were done for the day and with her being the last one out of their schedules to finish that day she arrived last at the fountain.

“Sorry, got here as soon as I could,” She stood in front of her friends who all seemed excited for the celebration. 

“That’s okay. We weren’t waiting that long.” Brody gave a warm smile while she got up from the fountain.

“Now that Clem’s here, we can finally get this night started!” Louis declared, pushing back his coat dramatically. Clementine had never seen him wear the coat before. Its brown tone matched perfectly with his green shirt. It really did look great on him. She had to pull herself out of her thoughts however when the group started to make their way over to the parking lots. 

“You ready for a night of endless fun?” Louis asked with a playful smile.

“You know it.” Clementine replied. “I like your coat.”

A slight blush grew on Louis’ face, soon replaced by a bright smile.“Thanks, it helps protect me from the harshness of these fall months.” He pulled on the sides of his coat proudly.

Clementine giggled, smiling up at him. It wasn’t long before the team arrived in front of the parking lots.

“Alright, so my car is just down this way,” Louis gestured towards the far left parking lot. “It should be pretty comfortable even if there are five of us.”

“I’m going to take my car there.” Violet added.

“Why?” Aasim asked, confused by the need for two cars. 

“I just feel like driving there.” Violet replied with a shrug. 

“I can go with you if you’d like.” Brody offered.

“If you want.”

“Okay, well I guess we’ll see you there.” Clementine said before she went off with Louis and Aasim.

Violet and Brody went off their own way, neither of them talking until they reached the car. Violet slid into the driver’s seat, fastening her seat belt. “You put on your seat belt?”

“Yep.”

Violet started up the car, carefully backing up before heading out towards the karaoke place.

“So, is there some reason why you wanted to take your car?” Brody's question caused Violet to glance over, quickly returning her gaze to the road a moment later.

“Do I need one?”

“Well, you’re just acting a bit weird is all.” Brody responded, an expression of concern on her face. 

Violet picked up on it pretty quickly and tried to think of a valid reason that wouldn’t reveal the truth. “I just didn’t want to be stuck at the karaoke place longer than I had to be.”

“Oh, that makes sense,” Brody knew how it felt when you got overwhelmed by a situation. “Well, I can cover for you if you need to leave early.

Violet looked at her friend with a small smile on her face. “Thanks.”

It wasn’t a long drive; within fifteen minutes they were at the location Louis had told them about. The two cars arrived around the same time. Reuniting with their friends, the group made their way inside the building.

“Welcome to Moon Star Karaoke!” A friendly lady smiled at the front desk.

“Hello, we’d like one room for two hours.” Louis held up two fingers.

“Here you go. You have Room 2 which is right down the hall to your left.”

“Thanks,” Louis looked back at his friends, motioning them to follow him. Soon they were in a room filled with a few couches and a menu in case they needed snacks or drinks. After everyone had settled down and ordered some refreshments, Aasim let out a long yawn.

“Sorry, been really busy with class and the questions I’ve had to answer at the sheriff’s department.”

“Because of Professor Weathers?” Brody asked, leaning back into the couch.

“Yeah, don’t worry. I didn’t reveal anything about personas. It was just a bit tense is all.”

“I know that feeling. I was called into questioning after the first case. I got so nervous I accidently spilled water all over my pants.” Louis gave a sympathetic smile to Aasim.

Violet let out a snort. 

“You spilled water on your pants?”

“Hey, it was a high stress situation! You know what? Just for that, Vi, you and I are singing the first song together.”

“Not happening.” Violet mumbled, crossing her arms. The look on Louis’ face made her slowly crack though. With a sigh she got up, snatching the microphone. Louis clapped his hands together, running over to select the song. The screen before them displayed the title of the song: “Lean on Me”.

Violet let out an annoyed sigh when Louis started singing.

 _Sometimes in our lives we all have pain,_ Louis dramatically reached out his hand, wanting Violet to join in, but continued to sing when she didn’t. _We all have sorrow,  
But if we are wise  
We know that there's always tomorrow._

Louis danced around, singing happily to the song. Slowly, Violet began to join in.

_Lean on me, when you're not strong  
And I'll be your friend,  
I'll help you carry on..._

Violet sang softly, a small smiling creeping up on her face when Louis turned to her with a goofy smile.

_For it won't be long  
'Til I'm gonna need  
Somebody to lean on._

The two continued the song, Violet gradually getting more comfortable with the song as Louis continued to be extra with all the lyrics.  
With an electrifying swush of his coat, Louis hit the last note. Violet tossed aside the microphone, returning to her seat just as the refreshments arrived. The group paused their karaoke to feast on their snacks. Clementine glanced over at her boyfriend who tossed a snack in his mouth before laughing at something Brody said, causing him to snort. She didn’t know why she had the sudden desire to let the others know that he was her boyfriend, but she thought it would be best if they knew. Locking eyes with Louis, she saw that he seemed to pick up on the plan. Clementine slowly got up to her feet, making her way over to the front of the room.

“So, I know it’s a bit weird to announce this, but I thought you guys should know that Louis and I are dating.” Louis jumped up at those words, standing over by her side.

“I thought you guys were already together,” Aasim stated casually. “The way you act makes it pretty obvious.”

“Yeah, it was pretty clear these last few days.” Brody added. Violet nodded in agreement while tossing some more snacks on her plate.

Clementine was shocked. She didn’t think they were that obvious. Suddenly she felt Louis’ arms wrap around her shoulders, his head gently placed on top of hers.“Well I’m glad we have the group’s blessing,” A huge dorky grin was on his face. “I think we should celebrate with a song. What do you say, Clem?”

“Let’s do it.”

Soon the couple was singing the lyrics to Don’t Go Breaking my Heart.

 _Don't go breaking my heart._ Louis started out the song, looking towards his girlfriend.

 _I couldn't if I tried._ Clementine sang back to him with a warm smile. _Honey, if I get restless,_

Louis walked towards her. _Baby, you're not that kind._

The song continued, each of them giving it their all and having lots of fun as the love song continued. Most of the songs sung throughout the next hour were done by Louis and Clementine who both seem to enjoy themselves, singing song after song. Brody and Aasim had gotten distracted by something else as Aasim had brought up the topic of history rap battles.

“That sounds interesting.” Brody commented, taking a sip from her cup.

“If you want, we could watch one.” Aasim asked. It was obvious that he was hoping that she would agree. It was rare to find someone who actually cared about history. At least, it was for him.

“Sure, it sounds like fun.”

Aasim took out his phone, pulling up the first video. The two friends watched, completely drawn into the rap battle. Violet glanced up and saw that Clem and Louis were just as invested in the song they were singing. Now was her chance to slip out. Quietly, she grabbed her phone and opened the door. 

Violet felt her heart beating faster and faster as she drove away. She was shocked when she’d received that text from Prisha the other day. She had asked Violet if she wanted to celebrate the professor's arrest together. When Violet had gotten the text she had felt her heart stop for a moment before she sent a text back saying that she did. Now she was driving back to campus, going over the different texts that Prisha had sent. Wondering if this was a date or if it was just hanging out as friends. Her knuckles grew white as her mind struggled to figure out the answer. Pulling into the parking lot, she got out of her pickup truck and made her way over to one of the sets of student apartments. Prisha had texted her the address. Violet made her way into the right building, going up a few flights of stairs before arriving in front of the right door. Prisha’s name was displayed proudly on her door in her cursive handwriting. Violet tried to take a deep breath to recenter herself but it didn’t seem to do anything. She still felt just as nervous. Pushing past it, she knocked on the door which opened a moment later. 

“Hi, Violet!” Prisha’s warm smile caused Violet to freeze for a second. 

“Hi, Prisha. Are you ready to go?”

“Yes.” Prisha stepped forward, shutting and locking the door behind her. Violet didn’t know what else to say so she just decided to start leading the way to her truck. The two walked in silence until they got to the truck. _Shit, my truck sucks,_ Violet thought as she opened up the door. If this was a date, it would be a pretty ass one. Who would pick someone up in an old, beat-up blue pickup truck? Starting up the car, she made her way onto the street. 

Violet glanced over at Prisha. Her black braid draped over her left shoulder, going further down over her teal top. Her dark brown eyes shone brightly. She was so pretty. Suddenly she looked over at Violet who quickly looked away, focusing back on the street. 

“I like your shirt. It looks good on you.” Prisha complimented with a smile. Violet looked down at her ratty old shirt and pants.

“If by ‘good’ you mean ‘looking like some hobo’, then sure I guess it looks good.” Violet replied, turning a corner before continuing down the street.

“Oh come on, it _does_ look good. It highlights something about you.” 

Violet raised an eyebrow in confusion.

“That you’re unapologetically you. It’s refreshing.”

Violet really didn’t know how to respond to that. “Thanks,” she mumbled, pausing for a second. “You look nice too.”

Prisha’s face grew brighter when hearing those words. Before she could respond Violet had stopped the truck.

“We’re here.” 

The two got out of the truck, making their way to the back of it and sitting on the cargo bed. It wasn’t any sort of special celebration; Violet had just suggested that they go stargazing together which Prisha seemed excited about. The two sat side by side, Violet’s legs drawn up, her arms wrapped around them. She felt so nervous. 

“So… stargazing?” Prisha asked, looking over at Violet who quickly looked over at her before returning her gaze back to the sky. 

“I’ve always enjoyed it. Looking up at the stars in the night sky was always nice, quiet.” Violet let go of her knees.

“The sky tonight is quite beautiful.” Prisha replied. Her hand laid right beside Violet’s. The pair sat in silence for a bit, enjoying the starry sky. Prisha slowly lifted up her hand, moving it towards Violet’s who moved her hand away absentmindedly when she was shifting her weight. It only took a moment for Violet to realize what had just happened. Did Prisha think this was a date too? Did she really read those texts the right way?

“So, do you know any constellations?” Prisha’s question snapped her out of her thoughts. 

“No, not really. Besides the Big Dipper.” Violet glanced over at Prisha who was looking up at the sky. Her brown eyes danced taking in the star-covered sky. 

“See that bunch of stars over there?” Prisha asked, pointing at one of the stars above Violet’s head.“If you follow that line of stars there then connect those four it makes up Ursa Minor.”  
Violet tried to follow along, her eyes widening when she saw it. 

“It’s called Ursa Minor because of a myth where Zeus’ son Arcas fell in love with the maiden Callisto. Zeus changed the two into bears and placed them in the sky to protect them from Hera. Ursa Minor is supposedly Arcas while Ursa Major is Callisto.”

“They got changed into bears? Then put up in the sky?’ Violet asked, looking over at Prisha who met her gaze. 

“That’s what the myth says.” 

“Why does it seem that things are always named after some crazy myth?”

Prisha returned her gaze to the sky and was giving the answer, but Violet wasn’t listening. She was too wrapped up in her own thoughts. Prisha had tried to hold her hand, right?  
Violet felt her heartbeat increasing as she looked down at their hands that were still next to each other. _Should I go for it?_ Without giving her mind a second to think twice she slowly reached out for Prisha’s hand. Their hands were nearly touching when suddenly Prisha’s hand shot up.

“There it is!” Prisha pointed excitedly to the sky. 

Violet felt her heart drop. Maybe this was just something they were doing as friends. _She probably was just moving her hand, not trying to hold mine._ Violet looked away for a moment trying to collect her thoughts when a sudden warmth was felt on top of her hand. Looking down, she saw Prisha’s hand on hers. _Holy shit._ Violet’s mind couldn’t process what was happening.

Prisha did think it was a date. Carefully she moved her hand up, gently intertwining her fingers with Prisha. Violet's heart skipped a beat when she noticed a warm smile appear on Prisha’s.Violet felt her own smile growing as she continued to listen to Prisha’s tales about the different constellations. The two sat together, a warm, soft feeling washing over them as they held hands and stared up at the beautiful, starry sky.


	19. A Spooky Good Time

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The group of friends spend Halloween together enjoying all the candy and movies that come with it.

Clementine couldn’t believe it. She had told her friends about her boyfriend before she had told Lee. Dreading the conversation, she rolled out of bed dragging her feet towards the dining room table. 

“Morning. sweetpea,” Lee called out from behind the stove. The smell of bacon wafted through the air. 

“Morning, Lee,” Clementine stifled a yawn as she sat down at the table across from her brother. It was only a few moments before a plate of breakfast appeared before her. Eggs, bacon and toast covered her plate. She began to dig in, her fork piling the food into her mouth. Clementine wanted to enjoy every last bite of the food, but her nerves made it hard to do so. 

Lee seemed to pick up on it, pausing his eating and looking at his daughter. “Clem, is there something on your mind?” he asked, looking over at her with concern.

Clementine placed down her fork.She should just go for it.“There’s something that I need to tell you…” Clementine took a deep breath. “I’m dating someone. His name is Louis. You've seen him a few times when he’s dropped by.”

AJ looked up from his plate.“The guy with that big spider hair?”

Clementine chuckled, “It’s called dreadlocks,” 

She turned her attention away from her brother, glancing over at Lee who seemed deep in thought. Slowly he lifted up his coffee. “I’m glad for you. He seems like a good kid,” 

Her nervous expression was changed to one of shock at his words. She reached over for her orange juice, taking a long sip from it.  
He lifted the cup to his mouth, muffling his words. “ I’m seeing someone too.”

Clementine choked on her orange juice, hitting her chest a few times before she could give a response. “What the hell, Lee! When were you going to tell me?”

“I could ask you the same thing.” He gave a stern look back, but his eyes seemed playful. 

“Well, who is she?” Clementine asked, leaning forward in her chair.

“Her name is Carley Porter. She’s a news reporter who was doing a piece on the university and we sort of just hit it off.” A gentle smile appeared on his lips at the memory. 

_Wait, I’ve heard that name before…_

She was the reporter on the news station that had covered the first two cases that Clementine and her friends had been involved in.

“Hit it off?’ AJ asked, confusion overtaking his features. The eggs on his fork slipped off and landed on his plate. 

“It’s a phrase that means you immediately get along with them,” Clementine responded, looking towards her father for further clarity.

“Well, I guess it makes sense that we did get along so well,” Lee started. “She reports the news of today, I report the news of the past. It just works.”

Clementine’s head was still trying to process all that just happened when her phone suddenly buzzed. Looking down, she noticed it was two texts from Louis to different group chats. 

“Is that him?” Lee asked with a teasing smile. Clementine felt her face slightly blush at the words. 

“I’m done, I’ll see you later after classes.” She slipped out before either of them could reply. Her class didn’t start for a while so she had time to check what Louis had sent.

L: _Hey there! So thanks to the brilliance of Aasim and myself we came up with the wise idea to start two Discord servers. One will be for persona topics only and the other will be just for the daily chats with all you lovely people that we all enjoy so much._

Below his text was the link to get access to the server. Clementine switched to the second text and realized the reason for two servers Prisha was added to this group text. A warm smile covered her face; she was glad that they had thought to add her. It meant that they could still include her without worrying about spilling their secret. Quickly making a Discord account, she paused. What should her username be?

A proud smile pulled on the corners of her lips as she entered the answer. After a few minutes the two servers were added and she entered the non-persona one, fittingly named Team Fun. Entering the basic channel, she saw that she wasn’t the first one to arrive. 

Sing-us-a-song: _Welcome to Team Fun!_

Knife2meetU: _Why is it called team fun?_

Aasim: _I couldn’t come up with anything better so Louis named it._

Bro: _I like it._

OrangeuGlad: _wait we should do introductions. This is Clementine._

Sing-us-a-song: _That’s a good idea! This is Louis. Love the username Clem._

Knife2meetU: _Violet_

OrangeuGlad: _Thanks_

Aasim: _I’ll add an introduction channel to be safe in case we forget. So be sure to add your info._

Sing-us-a-song: _Who’s Bro?_

Bro: _It’s Brody.  
I tried to add my full name cause I couldn’t think of a username but I forgot the last two letters and by then it was too late._

Aasim: _You can change it._

Sing-us-a-song: _No don’t!  
Your username is good_

OrangeuGlad: _I need to go - have class._

Clementine closed the app on her phone. Her class was all the way across campus so she needed to leave now if she was going to be on time. Her classes were just the same old same old. A very long lecture filled with lots and lots of notes that she had to take, causing her hand to cramp up. As soon as she had a break she opened up the Discord again. Nothing much had been added since she left, just the others saying they needed to go too. It had only got interesting within the last half hour. 

Sing-us-a-song: _You ever just smell your finger and it stinks but you don’t know from what?_

Knife2meetU: _Louis  
Shut  
In class_

Sing-us-a-song: _well sorry that I had an important question to ask._

With that Clementine put away her phone. She was planning to meet with her professor soon. The rest of the day went by about as slowly as the first half. It seemed everyone was busy today so when her classes were done she went back home. Kicking off her shoes, she hopped up the stairs entering her bedroom and lying on the bed.  
_Wonder if anything else was said in the chat._

It wasn’t much added to the chat, just a single message. 

Prishafacie: _Thank you for letting me join._

Clementine looked at the username. Prishafacie? Knowing Prisha, it was some smart play on words. Soon more messages appeared. 

Bro: _Prisha!!  
Glad you joined _

Sing-us-a-song: _it wouldn’t be the same without you._

OrangeuGlad: _welcome to Team Fun_

Sing-us-a-song: _^^^_

Prishafacie: _Thanks, everyone._

Knife2meetU: _I hate everything._

Bro: _bad day?_

Sing-us-a-song: _well fear not I have a solution._

Aasim: _Oh no._

Sing-us-a-song: _why don’t we all get together for Halloween and throw a party?  
We never celebrated all our work on the investigation. _

Prishafacie: _But our investigation was a bust._

Bro: _doesn’t mean we can’t celebrate_

Sing-us-a-song: _hear hear_

An image appeared on the chat that Louis shared. It was the Ericson University newspaper. The front page held the story of Professor Weathers’ arrest. 

_We were right on the money_

Knife2meetU: _where would we meet?_

OrangeuGlad: _I can check with Lee and see if he’d let us have it here._

Clementine ran down the stairs, searching around for Lee. Her eyes soon found him on the couch. 

“Hey Lee, can I have a few friends over on Halloween after trick or treating with AJ?” 

“Sure, that’s fine with me. Will your boyfriend be coming?” 

She couldn’t see his face, but she knew he had a teasing smile on it. 

“Yes.” 

“Alright then,” 

Clementine took out her phone again, heading back up to her room. 

OrangeuGlad: _He says it’s fine but we have to do it at 8  
Promised AJ that we would go trick or treating first_

Aasim: _Works for me._

Knife2meetU: _same here_

Prishafacie: _For me as well._

Bro: _8 works_

Sing-us-a song: _well then all we need to do is figure out the movie and we need to get some snacks and candy_

Bro: _I can get the snacks and candy_

Aasim: _Get candy corn._

Knife2meetU: _don’t_

Aasim: _I want it._

Bro: _I can get some for you Aasim_

Sing-us-a-song: _Now onto movies_

Bro: _can we watch It’s the great pumpkin, Charlie Brown?_

Aasim: _Thanks  
I’m fine with that choice. _

Knife2meetU: _what about a horror movie?_

Sing-us-a-song: _i don’t know_

Prishafacie: _I’m down for a horror movie._

OrangeuGlad: _just bring both and we can decide when we’re together._

Sing-us-a-song: _sounds like a plan._

Bro: _Ok send me some different snacks you guys want._

Brody looked down at the different answers her friends had sent. There sure was a lot of variety here. She pushed open the door to the convenience store, her attention still on her phone. 

“Hey, Brody.” She looked up to see Mitch, a friendly smile on his face. 

“Hey, Mitch,” A warm smile overtook her face as soon as she saw him. 

“What are you getting today?” 

“Just some snacks and candy for the Halloween party that my friends and I are having.” 

Mitch nodded. “Sounds fun.” 

“You got any plans for Halloween?” Brody asked from one of the aisles, grabbing snacks from different shelves. 

“Just some trick or treating with my brother.” Mitch replied. Brody leaned out from the aisle to look at him. 

“You have a brother?” 

“Yeah, his name’s Willy. He’s twelve so all he wants to do for Halloween is go trick or treating and pig out on candy.” 

“Sounds like a good plan.” Brody walked forward, her arms filled with different snacks and candies. 

Mitch started to process the different items, stopping when he got to the candy corn.“You like candy corn?” His nose scrunched up with a mixture of disgust and confusion. 

“Nope, can’t stand the stuff. But my friend likes it.” Brody responded, grabbing out her wallet to get ready to pay. 

“Neither can I. It’s just so fucking nasty. It really is the ass of Halloween candy.” 

Brody laughed at Mitch’s words, which caused a smile to form on his face. After a few more items the order was processed, and with a few bills exchanged Brody lifted up the bag of snacks. “Enjoy your Halloween.” Mitch called out to her. 

“Thanks! You too.” 

Brody looked down at the assortment of treats she had gotten, an excited smile appearing on her face. She couldn’t wait for Halloween. 

\---- 

Clementine shifted in her Halloween costume. She had promised to dress up with AJ which she was happy to do. It was just that the outfit was a bit itchy. She was going as Calypso Cauliflower to match her brother’s theme. 

“Ta-da!” AJ jumped out of his bedroom, proudly displaying his outfit. He had decided to go as his favorite character of all time: Disco Broccoli. His eyes were covered with the signature purple sunglasses. His white disco outfit shone as a gold chain dangled on his neck. He really wanted to go all out this year so he had come up with the brilliant idea to dye his hair green. It was temporary dye, but there was still the chance that his hair would stay that color for a few days afterward. With the shape of his afro he really did look like Disco Broccoli. 

“You look great, AJ!” 

AJ struck a disco pose dramatically. “You ready?” he asked excitedly, swinging his candy container back and forth. 

“I was born ready!” Clementine grabbed her brother’s hand and headed towards the door. She turned her head back around her shoulder. “We’re heading out!” 

“Ok, have fun!” Lee’s voice rang out from his office. 

With that the brother-sister team was off walking around their neighborhood. AJ’s eyes lit up every time they got to a new house. 

“Come on, Clem!” He pulled on her arm, making his way towards the next door. 

“Slow down, kiddo.” Clementine tried to keep up, smiling at the pure joy on her brother’s face. AJ reached forward, knocking on the door. He impatiently swayed back and forth as he waited for someone to answer the door. It only took a moment for a person to show up at the door. 

“Well, hi there! What are you dressed up as?” a kind lady asked, reaching inside to grab the candy bowl she had prepared for the trick or treaters. 

“I’m Disco Broccoli!” AJ declared proudly, displaying his best disco move. He quickly gestured over to Clementine. “Clem is Calypso Cauliflower. 

“Silly me, I should’ve known,” the lady chuckled. “Take as much as you like.” She held out the candy bowl which AJ and Clementine took generous amounts from, thanking the lady before heading to the next house. After a couple more houses the duo realized that their time was up. Grabbing a hold of AJ’s hand, Clementine headed back to her house, excited for the Halloween party that was soon to come. 

Luckily she had timed it out right and had left enough time for herself to change and make the living room look decent for her friends. Soon a knock on the door came. 

“Coming!” Clementine shouted, running towards the front door and opening it. 

Louis and Violet stood in the front of the group, the rest peeking out their heads from behind. 

“We have arrived,” Louis exclaimed with his classic charming smile. “With us we carry the delicious treats for this spooky night!” The group slowly shuffled in. Clementine grabbed the bags from the group, making her way to get some bowls from the kitchen. 

“Thanks, Brody.” 

“No problem.” Brody made her way to the kitchen. “Do you need any help?” 

“Yeah, actually. Can you help pop some popcorn? It should be up in the lower cabinet by the fridge.” 

Brody nodded, quickly fulfilling her given task. 

“So what movie are we watching?” Louis asked, sitting down on the couch. 

“I brought _Texas Chainsaw Massacre._ ” Violet replied, simply placing the DVD on the couch. 

Louis looked warily at it. It was pretty clear horror wasn’t for him. 

“My DVD is in my bag.” Brody called from the kitchen. 

“We have time for both if you want?” Clementine offered to which the group agreed almost immediately. 

“I think we should start with horror.” Violet added. 

“Sounds good to me.” Prisha stood beside her. 

“Okay, maybe it would be good to get it over with first.” Louis gave a sigh. He walked forward, grabbing the DVD and heading towards the TV. “Vi, help me set this up while Clem and Brody get the snacks ready.” 

Violet followed her friend. 

“I’m not sure I’ve properly introduced myself.” Aasim walked over to Prisha. “I’m Aasim,” He offered his hand which she accepted, giving it a firm shake. 

“Prisha.” 

“I saw on the intro channel that you’re a law major. That’s really interesting. What made you choose that career path?” 

Prisha’s expression changed to an excited one as she answered his question.The two soon got wrapped up in their conversation, each of them interested in what the other had to say. 

“Popcorn’s ready.” Brody placed two bowls in front of the group. Clementine was close behind, placing down the bowls of candy. A small bowl filled with candy corn was beside them. 

“You got the movie set up?” Clementine asked as she watched her two friends work together. 

“Yep, just about.” Louis replied, standing up and grabbing the remote control. 

With a few clicks the movie began. Brody made her way over to one of the couches, joining Aasim who was already there with his candy corn. Clementine had settled down on the other couch which Louis soon joined, sitting beside her. Prisha sat on the other side of the couch while Violet sat next to her on the arm of the couch. The lights were off and the snacks were distributed. It only took a few moments to make it abundantly clear who enjoyed horror and who didn't. Brody tried to not get overwhelmed by the death scenes, averting her eyes when they happened. Aasim tried to help her by whispering different facts about the history behind the film which actually did help her calm down a bit. 

On the other hand Violet seemed to enjoy the movie, tossing popcorn in her mouth casually when the massacre started. Prisha didn’t seem fazed by it either. Instead most of her focus seemed to be on Violet. Her hand slowly made its way over to Violet’s, brushing against it. Violet seemed shocked for a moment before accepting Prisha’s hand. She was glad that it was so dark in the room so the others couldn’t see the slight blush forming on her face. 

Clementine also seemed to enjoy the film, but not because of the plot. Instead it was because of Louis. He really couldn’t handle horror so he ended up curling up in her arms. He would try to make some sort of funny commentary to cope with the scarier moments, giving quippy one-liners from the safety of Clementine’s arms. She felt his warmth against her. A warm fuzzy feeling enveloped her body as she looked down at her boyfriend. She didn’t mind this arrangement. In fact she hoped that the movie would somehow drag on so she could enjoy this moment. 

Her eyes were suddenly drawn away from the screen however when she noticed Lee standing in the kitchen. He had a playful smile on his lips as he motioned towards Louis. Clementine’s arms were protectively around him as he continued to try and watch the movie. Lee raised a thumbs up to his daughter. Clementine felt her face grow hot while she tried to focus back on the film. 

“That was awesome.” Violet commented, grabbing some more candy as the end credits rolled on the screen. 

“Funny, you and I pronounce ‘terrifying’ differently.” Louis mumbled, freeing himself from Clementine’s arms to put in the second movie. Within a few minutes the title screen was on the TV. 

Brody shifted on the couch, a child-like joy appearing in her eyes when the movie started. She must’ve seen this movie countless times with how frequently she said the lines word for word as the scenes happened. The group looked over at her with smiles on their faces, happy to see her having a good time. It wasn’t long before Brody’s line for line commentary stopped though, her shoulders slumping while her head fell back. The slow rising and falling of her chest indicated that she had fallen asleep. Aasim made sure not to move too much so he wouldn’t wake her up. After a while Lee made his way into the room. 

“Hi there. I forgot to introduce myself. I’m Lee.” 

The group looked over, quickly returning their introductions. 

“It’s nice to meet some more of Clem’s friends. She always talks about you.” 

Clementine awkwardly shifted from her spot in Louis’ arms. 

“Look at you guys, six friends that make up three couples." 

The mood instantly changed in the room. Louis and Clem looked at each other with awkward smiles on their faces. Meanwhile Prisha and Violet were both overwhelmed by Lee’s assumption, their faces both turned away to hide their blushes. Their hands were still intertwined. But the most shocking response was Aasim’s. He was in the middle of eating some candy corn when Lee suggested that he and Brody were a couple to which he inhaled the candy corn wrong, causing him to choke. Brody’s eyes fluttered open, widening when she saw her friend struggling to breathe. With a few strong whacks to the back Aasim coughed up the candy corn which went flying and landed by Lee’s feet. 

“I’m sorry if I misspoke! Let me grab you some water.” Lee ran into the kitchen, pulling down one of the cups. 

“That’s the price to pay for eating candy corn.” Louis shook his head in mock sadness. 

Aasim glared over at him. “Don’t blame this on the candy corn.” 

Lee soon returned and handed the glass of water to Aasim who accepted it gratefully. “Well, I better leave you kids to it.” Lee gave an apologetic smile before returning into his study. 

The rest of the movie passed by in no time. 

“I love that movie.” Brody stood up, stretching out her arms. 

“It really is a classic.” Louis agreed. 

The rest of the group slowly got up to their feet, each of them tired after the two movies but also sad that the party was over. 

“Well, we should probably head out.” Louis took out his car keys. The four of them made their way to the front door. 

“This was really fun,” Brody turned back to look at Clementine “I can’t wait for the next party.' 

“I’m sure with our group it won’t be long until the next one.” 

“Thanks for inviting me tonight.” Prisha looked up at the group. “It really means a lot." 

The group all shared a warm smile. 

“We really should go.” Aasim commented from the front door. 

“Yeah, we have class tomorrow.” Brody added. 

Violet let out a frustrated groan. 

“Alright, alright.” Louis leaned forward, planting a gentle kiss on Clem’s cheek. “See you tomorrow.” 

“See you tomorrow.” Clementine waved to her friends as they left, shutting the front door behind them. She walked up to her bedroom, falling backwards onto her bed. A huge grin overtook her face. To think that she would have this amazing of a group of friends, that she would have such a sweet boyfriend… she couldn’t believe it but she couldn’t be happier. 


	20. A New Equilibrium

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Clementine and her friends continue going through their daily routines when they run into a rift: the first one for their two newest members on their team.

Louis felt his anxiety rising with each passing minute. He knew this was the right call to make. His friends and girlfriend deserved the truth, but he couldn’t help but feel nervous about how they might react to his news. 

“Louis,” Clementine’s words snapped him back into reality. “You okay?”She looked over at her boyfriend in concern. In fact all his friends had stopped walking to see what was up. 

“Who, me? Yeah, I’m fine,” He gave a confident smile which soon faded. “But there is something I need to tell all of you.”

“Is it something serious?” Aasim asked, shifting the bag on his shoulder.

“Yeah, it is.” Louis looked down at the floor.

Violet would usually say some sort of snarky comment, but seeing how her friend was acting made her pause. Clementine placed a reassuring hand on his shoulder.

“I haven’t been honest with all of you,” Louis looked around at his friends. Brody seemed especially on edge due to his words. “The truth is that I’m actually rich - like, super loaded. I know I should’ve told you guys about it. I just guess I was worried about… I don’t know, stupid shit. Everyone always acts differently when they hear the news. They either think I’m fake or they turn out to be fake themselves.” He nervously scratched the back of his head. Finally getting up the courage, he looked at the faces around him. No one said anything for a minute. Then Violet slowly rifled through her pockets and revealed her car keys. 

“Who’s ready for a McDonalds run? Louis is paying!” She looked at Louis with a happy smirk. 

“That sounds nice.” Aasim commented.

“Wait! So you guys don’t like, hate me or anything?” Louis looked around in confusion. 

Clementine intertwined her fingers with his. “Why would we hate you?” 

“Yeah, if anything it makes sense why you’ve been able to always foot the bills here and there.” Brody added with a smile. 

“Come on, let’s go! Chicken nuggets await!” Violet called out from across the fountain.

“Alright calm down, Vi,” Aasim huffed, running to catch up with her. The rest soon followed, making their way to the nearest McDonalds. After everyone had placed their orders and gotten their food the group sat around in a booth. 

“Violet, I have no idea how your stomach can handle that much.” Aasim motioned towards the boxes upon boxes of chicken nuggets that stood in front of her on a tray. She quickly separated the two towers of chicken nuggets down the middle so she could respond to him.

“I don’t know how you can eat that nasty thing you call food.”

Louis laughed at her comment. “Yeah, dude, I don’t know why you got a fish fillet sandwich when there are so many other options.”

Aasim looked rather insulted by their comments. “It’s good so of course I got it. Besides you’re one to talk, getting a Happy Meal.” 

“Hey man, there’s nothing wrong with _my_ choice.” Louis opened his bottle of chocolate milk, taking a long gulp from it. The others decided not to get involved with the pointless fight and after a while everyone was back to eating. That is until Clementine offered Louis a fry to which he accepted, biting it while it was still in her hand and grinning at her. 

“Ew, could you not do that in front of my chicken nuggets?” Violet groaned while opening yet another container. 

“Well, I’m sorry to have bothered you by spending time with my girlfriend,” Louis replied sarcastically “Speaking of romance...”

“We weren’t.” Aasim butted in, munching down on his fish sandwich.

“I’m sure others around this table have started battling in the Colosseum that is romance.”

Brody looked over at Louis, confused by his choice of words.

“Aasim, tell me, is there anyone who’s caught your eye?” Louis asked with a playful glint in his eyes.

“Not that it’s any of your business, but no. All I have time for is my research, especially now that Rebecca is gone.” Aasim replied, still focusing on his meal in front of him.

“Well, that wasn’t a fun answer, but I know it will be different with Brody.” Louis looked over with a mischievous expression. 

Brody looked surprised for a second before her face remained indifferent.“What are you talking about, Louis?”

“Just the other day I decided that I too wanted to support our local business and so I went into the convenience store across from campus and that’s when I met the real reason why Brody always goes there.” Louis leaned back into the booth. “That reason goes by the name of Mitch.”

Based on how wide Brody’s eyes got before her face got covered in a light blush, his guess had been right. 

“You have a crush on someone?” Clementine leaned forward, excited by the news. The others looked just as invested as her.

Brody looked around at her group of friends. “Yes. I don’t think anything will happen though.” Brody whispered.

“Don’t sell yourself short, Brody,” Louis gave an encouraging smile.

“Yeah, anyone would be lucky to have you.” Clem added. 

Violet nodded in agreement from behind her chicken nugget towers. 

“We’re just friends.” Brody replied, an embarrassed smile on her face. 

“Is he cute?” Clementine asked, leaning forward to see her friend.

The expression on Brody’s face made that answer pretty clear. After a few more questions the group settled down. Louis wasn’t done however. 

“Well it wouldn’t be fair to the others if I didn’t ask about my most confident guess.” His eyes seem to meet Violet’s who seemed wary. “So Vi, do you have a crush on someone? Perhaps with a name starting with the letter P?” His teasing smile made Violet look away before she closed the two towers of food together. “Wait, no, Violet come on! Don’t hide behind your chicken nugget wall!” Louis pleaded, trying to move the boxes apart while Violet continued her strong hold on them.

“You have a crush on Prisha?” Brody asked, excitement filling her eyes at the thought that her guess may be right.

“You do?” Aasim questioned. 

Violet’s grip on the box weakened, causing Louis to succeed in opening the wall. 

Brody seemed caught up in her own thoughts. “Wait, the night that we sang karaoke, where did you go?” Brody asked immediately, feeling a bit guilty when she saw the look in Violet’s eyes.

“Oh, was it to see Prisha?” Louis waggled his eyebrows. 

“Was it?” Clementine knew she was getting too caught up in her own curiosity. Violet glanced up at her friends before looking to the side. Louis let out a little victory laugh. “I knew you wouldn’t just ditch the group for nothing!”

“It doesn’t matter, I don’t think she likes me.” Violet mumbled. Her words caused her friends to stop their teasing. 

“Why do you say that?” Clementine looked towards Violet.

“Just a feeling.” Violet whispered. She was sure that Prisha enjoyed the idea of having a girlfriend rather than actually liking her. There was no way someone like Prisha could like someone like her. But there was no way she was going to share that in front of all of them. “We should head back.” Violet abruptly stood from her seat and made her way to her truck. With that the McDonald’s run was done as was the talk of romance. 

\----

Clementine stifled a yawn while she opened Discord, checking the Team Fun server first. 

Knife2meetU: _This day sucks_

Bro: _Math class was pretty bad today_

Sing-us-a-song: _I just want to be FREE!!!_

PrishaFacie: _Well, is everyone free after classes today?_

Aasim: _my schedule is open_

Bro: _I’m free_

Knife2meetU: _yeah_

OrangeuGlad: _Same here_

PrishaFacie: _Why don’t we get ice cream together afterwards?  
To celebrate getting through a rough day._

Sing-us-a-song: _Prisha!!!  
Your a geniuis_

PrishaFacie: _I know._

Sing-us-a-song: _*Genius_

Aasim: _My last class ends at 4._

Bro: _same_

Knife2MeetU: _I’ll be done by then_

PrishaFacie: _I won’t be done till 5:30. Is that okay?_

Sing-us-a-song: _Yeah!  
Desert before dinner!_

OrangeuGlad: _I’m fine with it_

Knife2MeetU: _lol desert_

The others were all down for the plan, agreeing to meet up at 5:35 in front of the fountain. Clementine felt a warm smile covering her face as she made her way to her next class. Luckily her class ended a little before four which meant she had time to check to make sure nothing appeared on the map that Igor had given her. She let out a sad sigh when there was actually something on there. A bright blue dot shone brightly against the map. Pulling out her phone, she entered the Persona Pals Discord server. Swiping down until she got to the #assemble chat and glancing through it.

Sing-us-a-song: _I miss Gabu  
Do you think he misses us _

Bro: _Gabu?_

Aasim: _what’s a Gabu?_

Sing-us-a-song: _not a what - a who  
he’s a friend that helped us in sanctums  
Maybe I should bring some snacks next time we jump in one _

Clementine took a deep breath before entering her message.

OrangeuGlad: _Rift has opened. Meet me by Building E. Bring your weapons. ASAP._

Placing her phone back into her bag, she made her way off campus to grab her weapon before going over to the meet up location. She knew it would only be a few minutes before her team showed up.   
The first two to arrive were Louis and Violet who also had brought their weapons, both of which were concealed in Louis’ bag. Or at least as concealed as possible. Louis’ picket stick stuck out slightly from the bag. Aasim was the third to arrive, looking a bit anxious at the thought of entering his first sanctum. Brody was the last to show up which was unusual.

“Where the hell is she?” Violet asked, leaning against a nearby wall.

“I’m sure she’ll be here soon.” Louis paced back and forth in front of her.

Suddenly they noticed a blur coming further and further into focus. It was Brody who seemed to be carrying two large objects in her hands. 

“Sorry I’m late. I just thought I should grab something for Aasim and I to fight with.” Her voice was a bit wheezy. She must’ve been running halfway around campus with those items. Looking down, Clementine saw more clearly what they were. A Styrofoam trident and what looked to be some sort of plastic sword. 

“A sai? Where did you get these?” Aasim asked, taking the sword into his hand.

Brody looked a bit ashamed of her answer. “I stole it from the weapons barrel in the Arts Department.”

“You stole?” Violet looked up from her spot.

“I’ll return it when we’re done.” Brody replied, quickly clutching onto the trident. 

Aasim was busy studying his sword when he noticed Clementine’s weapon of choice. “A bastard sword?” He raised an eyebrow.

“Oh, yeah. I used to borrow my little brother’s, but I felt bad for how many times I was going to have to end up taking it so I decided to buy my own. I didn’t know this style of sword had a particular name” She spun the wooden sword in her hand.   
“We should head in. Are you all ready?” Clementine slowly made her way around the group who all confirmed that they were. Taking a step forward the team was sucked into the sanctum. This one seemed to be a pretty small one, only consisting of a single room with walls covered from head to toe in calendar dates. Numbers and messages were scattered across the wall. 

Clementine’s gaze looked around before it fell on the person curled up in the middle of the room, stuck in a cage made from calendar pages. Making her way over she knelt down beside them, offering them a kind smile.“Hi there, my name’s Clementine. What’s your name?”

The boy looked up at her, his blonde hair covering his eyes. “Paul. Paul Turner.” his voice was weak and frightened.

“Okay Paul, don’t worry. My friends and I are here to help. Just give us a few minutes and we’ll get you out of there.” Clementine’s voice was calm, reassuring the scared college student. He gave a simple nod but when Clem stood to join her team his hand shot out, grasping hers.

“Please! Don’t leave me.” His voice cracked near the end of his plea. Clementine studied his eyes. 

“Alright.“ She turned her head over her shoulder towards the group. “Louis, take Aasim with you; we don’t know where the shadows will attack from. Brody, you’re with Violet. It’s your first sanctum so just stick by them, okay?” 

They immediately split into teams. Louis had just finished handing the meat cleaver to Violet when he noticed a familiar face. 

“Gabu!” Louis cried, running forward to sweep up the creature.

“Gabu!” Gabu replied, happy to see them.

“How are you doing, buddy?” Louis’ face beamed with a smile. “Oh, I brought you a snack!” Louis rifled through his backpack, revealing a bag of Takis with a short victory cheer.

Gabu’s eyes shone with excitement as his tentacles wrapped around the bag, opening it and devouring the contents inside.“Gabu!” he cried, happily munching on the Takis, enjoying each bite.

“Louis, we need to focus.” Clementine called over from the cage where the student still clutched onto her arm. 

“Right, sorry. I need to get to work, Gabu.” Louis said, proudly swinging his weapon onto his shoulder. No sooner did he say those words than some numbers and words squirmed on the wall. The ink fell from pages, making disturbing dripping sounds while forming into shadows. Gabu let out a scared cry before disappearing from their sight. 

“Shit,” Louis whispered. “Aasim, you get the one on the right. I’ll deal with the one on the left.”

“Got it.”

Running forward Aasim slashed his sword upwards, slicing off one of the shadow’s arms. The shadow let out a frustrated cry but didn’t last much longer when Aasim’s sai slashed it in half. Louis followed close behind, sidestepping to the left as he wound up his strike. With a loud crack the shadow went down, crumbling to a pile of goop before him. Soon shadows appeared on Violet’s side of the room. Four to be exact. 

“Same as them. I’ll take the left, you take the right.” Violet instructed, wielding her meat cleaver. Brody nodded, placing the trident in front of her. Without another word Violet sprinted forward, placing herself right in front of the shadow. Digging her meat cleaver into its head she brought the glove to her mouth, tearing it off. Backstepping to dodge the shadow’s attack, she slammed her hand against her heart. “Persona!” La Guillotine made quick work of her second enemy while Violet finished off the first. 

Brody was up next. Taking off her glove, she placed her hand against her heart. “Persona!” Ophelia rose behind her. Sending a volley of ice attacks to the first opponent while Brody ran forward, impaling the second one. Louis’ and Aasim’s personas soon appeared as well, causing major damage to their enemies. A flash of lighting zapped a shadow to a crisp while a whirlwind of flames took care of the last remaining shadow. Clementine looked at her team with pride. It may just be the beginning of their teamwork, but they were already working well together. 

Clementine turned her attention back to Paul who now stood free from the cage. 

“I-I don’t know how to thank you. I was in the middle of trying to figure out my insane schedule when I was dragged into this place. Next thing I knew, I was trapped in the cage.”

“No need to thank us. Just glad you’re safe.” Clementine gave a small smile. Paul turned into a ray of light before disappearing. The sanctum began to melt around them till they were back in reality. 

Brody let out a shaky breath.

“You did good.” Violet commented, walking past her. 

Brody’s face lit up at those words.“Thanks, Vi.”

“You all did really well today!” Clementine stated proudly. They all shared smiles before Violet’s eyes widened.

“Oh shit, what time is it!” She desperately pulled out her phone, letting out a sigh of relief when the time read 5:15.

“We made it back in time for ice cream.” Aasim sat down for a minute to catch his breath.

“I should probably return the props.” Brody commented.

“Well, good luck with that. You bent the three prongs.” Louis walked forward to examine the trident.

Brody’s eyes widened at his statement.

“Also it’s covered in blood.” Aasim added.

“Shit.” Brody’s head fell down in dread. 

Clementine placed a hand on her shoulder. “Don’t worry about it.”

“Yeah, they can always replace it. In fact, I think it would be a good idea to have all our weapons on campus. I can keep them in my dorm if you want.” Louis offered, holding out his open bag. 

“Your roommate would be fine with that? He wouldn’t think it was weird?” Aasim asked with a raised brow.

“Nah, Marlon is cool. Besides I already have a bunch of random junk in our room. He wouldn’t mind a few more.”

With those words Clementine, Aasim and Brody offered him their weapons. Violet on the other hand thought it would just be better for her to hold onto the meat cleaver herself. 

“Suit yourself,” Louis gave a shrug. “I’m gonna run these back. I'll meet you guys at the fountain.”He sprinted off, leaving the others to make their way to the meet up point. All of them were excited for ice cream and to hang out with Prisha again. It was only a little while later that Louis returned, his hands on his knees as he tried to catch his breath. 

Noticing that Prisha was already there, he gave a huge smile. “Sorry, I’m here! Who’s ready for ice cream?”

The group made their way off campus.

“Get whatever you want. I’m buying.” Louis declared, striding forward to intertwine his hand with Clem’s.

“I mean, you are rich.” Brody added.

“You’re rich?” Prisha looked surprised by the reveal that clearly everyone else already knew. 

Louis scratched the back of his head. “Yeah, so don’t hold back. Get whatever you want.”

With the promise of free ice cream the group of friends forged their way forward to Howe’s Ice cream parlor. After many bowls of ice cream and a few upset stomachs the group left the shop happy with their desserts. All of the sudden Louis let out a small sneeze. 

“Are you getting sick?” Aasim called from further back in the group.

“Nah, probably just ate ice cream too fast.”

Violet let out a snort. “Based on all the brain freezes you got, I wouldn’t be surprised.”

\----

Turns out it wasn’t the ice cream that caused Louis’ sneeze but rather a cold. It got worse over the next two days, so much so that he had to stay back in his dorm room. Clementine knew he’d be better soon, but she would be lying if she said she didn’t miss seeing his freckled face in all their classes together. Getting up to leave her English class, she was stopped when she heard someone call out to her. 

“Excuse me!” A girl with dark hair and red glasses ran forward, clutching onto her notebook. “I noticed Louis wasn’t in class today.”

“Yeah, he’s sick.”

The girl’s eyes widened in concern. “Oh no, I hope he feels better soon. Here,” She offered her notebook to Clementine. “Could you give him my notes? He's always so nice to me in class.”

Clementine’s face brightened at this girl’s kind gesture. “Sure, no problem. I’m Clementine.” She offered her hand out to the girl who gently shook it. 

“I’m Sarah.”

“It’s nice to meet you. Sorry I can’t talk longer. I promised to meet up with some of my friends after class.”

“That’s okay. See you next time.” She waved at Clem who returned the gesture before sprinting off. 

Clementine ran all around campus, stopping when she reached the gym. The thought of training hadn’t accord to her till Brody showed up, but now that they were officially a team set on helping people in need they needed to get more fit. Opening the door, she immediately recognized her group of friends. All three of them had different emotions about the whole thing. 

“You’ve been stretching for fifteen damn minutes, Aasim. Give it a rest.” Violet mumbled angrily, her arms crossed. 

Aasim bounced back and forth as he stretched out his legs. “It’s always good to prepare. Don’t whine to me when you’ve pulled a muscle.”

“Guys, come on, stop it.” Brody stood between them. All three of them stopped their conversation when Clementine strode forward.

“Hey, sorry. Class went over by a few minutes.”

“It’s fine.” Violet mumbled. 

Aasim stood up straight. “I just finished stretching so your timing is good.”

“Brody, would you be willing to guide us through the gym for this first time? Next time I’ll be sure to come up with a routine.”

Brody nodded, taking her friends through the different sections of the gym. Brody suggested that since they were fighting using different weapons they should each focus on their arms and their legs to hopefully help with the speed of shadows. Soon the four of them were going through different workouts. Violet constantly mumbled swears under her breath with each passing workout. After a while they all agreed that they had gotten a good start on their workout routine. As they exited the building, Brody ran up beside Clementine.

“I can help you write the routine if you want?”

“I’d really appreciate that.” 

The two shared a smile before continuing forward. 

Prisha stretched her neck as she left the building, pausing when she saw her group of friends exiting the gym. She looked towards Violet as she talked with her friends. Her eyes always shone the brightest whenever she was with her friends. Their pale green always seemed to capture Prisha’s attention. She thought back to the Halloween party back when Clem’s dad had talked about them as a couple. He had made some assumptions, sure, but Prisha didn’t want the one he made about her and Violet to be wrong. Maybe if she could get up the courage, she would tell Violet how she felt. She pulled herself back out of her thoughts when she noticed the group coming towards her. Violet looked up, giving a friendly wave. 

“Hey, Prisha.”

“Hey.”

“Do you wanna join us? We were thinking of grabbing a bite to eat.” Brody offered with a smile.

Prisha felt her smile grow at the offer. “I’d love to.”

With that she joined the group, heading to what was sure to be another fun hangout.


	21. A New Superhero

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> A new member joins the ranks of the persona team.

“It’s nice to hang together with just the two of us,” Brody commented with a warm smile as she placed a drink in front of Clementine who eagerly took a sip from it. These weeks were starting to wear on her a bit.

“Yeah, it really is.” Clementine glanced down at her nails that now proudly displayed sunflowers on each finger. Brody was kind enough to do her nails for her and was now looking at the end result. Clementine couldn’t help but smile. “Thanks again for the nail art.”

“Think nothing of it,” Brody sat down across from her. “I’m just glad to have another friend who enjoys it. I’ve always only done it with my roommate so it was nice to have someone new.”

Clementine took another long sip from her cup.“You and your roommate seem pretty close.” She commented at which Brody’s face lit up.

“Yeah, we’ve known each other for a couple years now. I was so excited when we finally were able to be roommates this year! She’s like a sister to me y’know.”

Clementine nodded in understanding. Having a sibling or a relationship that felt like one was really a special bond. She was about to comment when all of the sudden she noticed a kid running up towards them. His wavy, unkempt brown hair blew in the wind as he made his way over. He stopped right in front of them. His large eyes studied the pair in curiosity. Clem wasn’t sure how to respond to the pair of wide green eyes. 

“Hi there,” Brody said warmly as she leaned forward. “Can we help you with something?”

The boy’s gaze fell onto her. The gaps in his teeth were prominent while he looked towards her.“Hi.” he whispered, his voice coming out a bit rough, probably due to his nerves. He looked embarrassed by his own voice for a moment before looking back up.“Are you Brody?” 

Brody looked a bit shocked by the question.“Yes, I am.” her voice was calm and warm.

His eyes widened even more. A huge grin appeared on his face.“I knew it! Mitch always talks about you so much I knew I could find you!” he exclaimed, proud of his own observation skills. Clementine looked over at her friend who seemed to still be processing what had been said. Brody couldn’t believe what she had heard. Mitch talked about her a lot? It took a moment for her to snap back into reality.

“You know Mitch?”

The boy nodded excitedly.“Yeah, he’s my big brother!” he declared proudly, his toothy grin covering his face ear to ear. 

“Oh, so you must be Willy then.”

“You know me?” he looked shocked at her words. 

Brody gave a happy nod. “Mitch talks about you a lot. It’s nice to finally meet you.”

Willy’s expression was so full of happiness that it was hard not to smile along with him.

“So, Willy,” Clementine’s voice drew the others' attention, “Why did you need to find Brody?’

“Oh, right! I need your help. I think one of the nearby stores is trying to hurt our store!” He shot out his arms dramatically.

“What makes you say that?” Brody asked in concern.

“They keep trying to use underhanded tactics to make it hard for Mitch! That’s why I want your help, so that we can see if we can stop them!”

“Willy, do you have any proof?” Clementine leaned forward.

Willy shook his head. “Nope, not yet. That’s why we need to scout it out!”

Brody and Clementine shared a look. It was pretty clear that he didn’t have much to go off of, but considering how passionate he seemed about it he was going to go no matter what.

“How about this: we’ll go over there and just see how they run things then go from there.” Brody stood up to her feet “How does that sound?”

Willy considered the offer for a moment before nodding his head in agreement. “Just follow me!” he sprinted off past the fountain.  
Clementine got up to her feet. 

“Sorry, Clem,” Brody gave an apologetic smile.

“Don’t be. We’ll just help Willy with his mission and then we can talk later.”

“Come on, guys!” Willy waved his arms wildly, trying to get their attention. 

“We’re on our way!” Brody called back. With that the two of them joined Willy on their adventure to the local store. It was only a couple blocks down the street from Ericson. It was a more commercial store with a bigger staff and a nicer place than the convenience store that Mitch worked at. Willy jumped into the store, sneaking behind one of the aisles. Brody and Clementine joined him, watching as customers went about their day getting products. They stayed there for a few minutes before a rough throat clearing behind them made them jump. 

“You again?” the man asked with an annoyed tone, crossing his arms as his eyes narrowed on Willy. “When will you leave my store alone?”

“When you stop using those unfair prices!” Willy shot back, an angry expression on his face. “They’re way too low!”

Clementine watched the scene play out, starting to put together the pieces.

The man let out a tired sigh.“It’s just business. Now if you would just stop bugging me-”

“No!”

The man’s eyes hardened at Willy’s response.

“Listen here, you little brat! I don’t need snot nosed kids like you bothering my shop. Go back to your dinky store and leave me alone!”

“Hey, there’s no need to be so harsh,” Brody stepped forward, trying to deescalate the situation but it was already too late. Willy’s eyes were filled to the brim with tears as he pushed past the man, running out of the shop and down the street. “Willy!” Brody called out, running to catch him. Clementine was close behind. The two hoped they would find him soon and be able to help him calm down, but what they were met with was something else. There in the air a few steps away from the shop was a rift.

“Shit,” Clementine whispered, hoping that somehow that wasn’t Willy’s.

Brody took out her phone, quickly opening up the discord and clicking on the Persona Pals server and onto the #assemble chat. She scrolled swiftly through the messages.

Sing-us-a-song: _I can’t believe Brody fights with a trident  
Is it badass   
Fighting with a giant fork?_

Bro: _It’s not a giant fork_

Aasim: _Actually tridents have been used throughout history as weapons.  
Mostly known to be used as polearms  
Gladiators used them to fight in the arena_

Sing-us-a-song: _Can’t believe they fought with giant forks_

Bro: _I’m leaving_

Sing-us-a-song: _no  
Wait   
Bro  
Don’t leave_

Brody had finally reached the end of the chat. With a few presses on the keyboard she sent the message.

Bro: _Rift opened  
Willy got pulled in   
By the convenience store two blocks east of campus_

It wasn’t long before the other three members showed up. All of them were trying to catch their breath when Louis spoke up.

“Who’s Willy?”

“Mitch’s brother.” Clementine responded. 

“Shit.” Violet mumbled, crossing her arms.

“We don’t have time to talk, we should go into the rift.” Brody’s voice shook slightly. This was clearly weighing on her. The others quickly ran forward, opening up the rift and throwing them into the sanctum. They all needed a minute to recover from being thrown into a rift. 

When they finally regained their centers they glanced around, surprised to see the four walls covered in blank comic book panels. Before they could comment on it a voice suddenly began to narrate.“There once was a brave and courageous boy named Willy.” The voice rang out around the room. The first panel on the right wall all of the sudden was filled with a picture of Willy drawn in a comic book style. “That’s me!” the narrator proclaimed proudly at which point the drawing waved at them. The rest of the panels on the wall started to fill in as the narrator continued. “He was a superhero!” The first wall was covered with all kinds of action shots of Willy.The next wall began to be covered in colored art.“His power? To make everyone smile! Saving people and animals alike!” 

The second wall displayed the proud actions of Willy: helping old people cross the street and saving kittens from trees.“He was happy helping others, but then one day… everything changed.” The third wall showed a sad scene of Willy, Mitch and their dad standing beside a hospital bed. A woman laid there trying to put on a brave face for them. “Willy wasn’t sure if his power could help even though he always made her laugh and smile.”

The last panel of the third wall showed what the team assumed to be his mom smiling a joyful smile at her family. “It made him think. What if it wasn't enough?” The fourth wall showed the two brothers sitting together with tears in their eyes. “Could Willy save one of the people he loved the most?” When the narrator had finished the sentence the final panel was filled. A happy family portrait of Willy and his family stood there. The mother slowly faded in and out of view with each passing moment. The team stared at the four walls, surprised by the story that was told. 

After a few moments the portrait of the mom faded out and revealed the corridor.

“Shit,shit,shit,shit.” Brody whispered, sprinting forward. The others followed her, all of them quickly approaching a door they were all learning to hate. 

“What the shit,” Louis whispered, looking towards his girlfriend. “Kids can have sanctum sanctorums?”

“I…” Clementine stared at the door in disbelief. “I had no idea.”

Violet suddenly took a step back, hit by the wave of emotion emitting from the door. The rest of the team were shortly hit with it as well. Clementine placed her hand on her heart. 

_This feeling… it’s similar to Louis’, but different._

Louis seemed to pick up on the emotion quickly, casting a sad glance at the door. He had felt this feeling before; all of the team had. The feeling of being pathetic. Brody looked nervously at the door, her anxiety rising with each minute. She hoped and prayed that he would be safe.

\----

Willy looked around the room with cautious curiosity. It wasn’t anything special, just some chairs and a table. Or was it? There had to be a reason why that secret corridor opened up when he arrived. Right?  
He didn’t have much time to think before the next surprise hit him. There sitting on the table was… him?

“What?” Willy mumbled. The person looked up at him with a devious, toothy grin. With a single jump they landed on their feet. 

“I am you, you are me.” It gestured between the two of them.

“No, that doesn’t make any sense. There’s only one me.” Willy replied, his wide eyes staring in disbelief as his mind tried to process the sight before him.

“Well, then how do I know about your mom?” It strode forward, stopping directly in front of Willy’s face.“That she died on September 19th and that you cried like a baby.” 

Willy had a shocked expression on his face before it twisted in anger. “How do you know that?”

The construct laughed. “Because I’m you.” It sat down on the floor in front of him. “You know that you’re not anything special, right?” It gave a pitying smile. “After all, you couldn’t save your mom.” Its head fell backwards, blowing its hair back. “Some superhero you are.” It glanced over at Willy who seemed to try to keep his emotions in check. 

“I know I’m not a hero.”

“Really?” The construct’s head snapped forward, its eyes wide with surprise. “Then why do you keep acting like you’re one?”

Willy didn’t have an answer to that. 

“Honestly, it must be so annoying to be a member of your family when they have someone like you to deal with.” It jumped up to its feet, surrounding Willy with its presence. “Maybe they don’t even want you anymore.”

Willy’s eyes shot up with rage. Without a second thought he punched the construct in the gut. It doubled over in pain before looking up at him with a cocky smile and letting out an unnerving laugh.

\-----

The team sat around outside the door. There was nothing more they could do but wait. Brody wasn’t going to have it though. Standing abruptly to her feet she yanked off her glove.“Persona!” Ophelia stood behind her.

“What are you doing?” Violet glanced up from her spot.

“I know you’ve tried other means to open the door, but you haven’t tried your persona. So I’m going to.” With that she shot out her arm, calling forth a volley of ice that hit the door with all its power. It did nothing. The door stood in the same condition, mocking Brody’s effort. Brody threw down her hand, a frustrated feeling joining the one that was consuming her thanks to Willy’s sanctum. 

The others looked around, saddened that it didn’t work. Clementine stared at the door. How could Igor and James not let her know that this was a possibility? That children could be thrown into this world?

\------

Willy felt his emotions overwhelming him as the construct stood up again. 

“Why am I not surprised? When’s the last time you were able to do anything even remotely helpful? Just face it. You’re a nuisance to your family.” Its voice suddenly changed to one Willy didn’t want to hear. His dad’s.  
“Damn it, Willy! Not now! I’m busy. Just go play with your toys or something. I don’t have time for you right now.”

Willy felt his throat getting sore from the tears he refused to shed. He always hated when his dad got like that. It made him feel like he was just useless, a waste of space in the family. Mitch was always working so hard to make money for the family and he couldn’t yet. He wanted to help somehow, but each time it failed. _Maybe I really am a nuisance._

A weird paper suddenly appeared on the table which the construct seemed very happy about. “Sign it,” it spat at him. “Do something useful for once in your life.”

Willy felt his feet slowly drag him forward. Was this the right choice? Suddenly he was hit with a memory from a couple weeks ago. Mitch had had a late night of work and so he came home exhausted. Even though he was tired he still played with Willy, laughing and joking as they played as superheroes. When they had wrapped up their game Mitch walked forward and ruffled his brother’s hair with a happy smile on his face. 

“Thanks, Willy. I can always count on you to brighten my day. I guess that’s always been your superpower, huh?”

“I don’t know about that. It’s nothing special.” Willy looked down at the floor.

“Don’t say shit like that! I know I can always count on you!” His brother’s smile filled his heart with peace as he looked at the paper before him. Picking it up he crumpled it, tossing it to the side. 

“What the hell do you think you’re doing?” the construct glared at him.

“I know you’re wrong! I know my family doesn’t think of me like that! They love me for what I bring to the family, so I’m going to keep on bringing it!” Willy shouted, his large eyes staring down the construct.

“Shut up, shut up, shut up!” it yelled, saliva spitting from its mouth with each word as it clutched its sides. A white orb slowly cracked its body. “They don’t need you!”

Suddenly the construct blew up, leaving behind no evidence that it ever existed. Willy took a shaky breath. That sure was an unnerving experience, but he was glad it was over. Immediately after that thought, a sharp pain entered his heart causing him to scream out in pain. It was the worst physical pain he had ever felt in his life. He wanted it to stop. When he thought the worst part was over another pain appeared. This time on his hand. His eyes widened in fear when he saw his hand engulfed in flames that formed a sigil on it. Trying to deal with the pain, he clutched the sides of his head, pulling down his hands as he screamed. His nails tore at his face. It seemed to be endless, never stopping. Until all of a sudden the pain was gone. 

He slowly made his way to the chair, taking a seat. When out of the corner of his eye he noticed something bizarre standing where the imposter once stood. What looked to be a jack in the box stood in its place. The blue and orange box shone brightly as the jack in the box sprawled out, swaying back and forth.

“OH! You’ve awakened!” It had an excited tone to its voice, bouncing back and forth. “I can’t wait to fight together! We’re gonna be great.” Its brown hair looked similar to his as it swushed around. “I’m Jack-a-Dandy!” it exclaimed.

Willy couldn’t help but smile in response. “I’m Willy!”

The jack in the box seemed happy to hear his name. 

_I am thou, thou art I.  
By casting away the falsehoods placed within your heart and opening your eyes to the truth,  
I have come from the depths of your soul  
to help in your pursuit of justice._

Suddenly it turned into a bright orb and flew towards Willy’s heart. Willy clutched wildly at his shirt, unsure of what had just happened but it was awesome. The door behind him slammed open. Brody ran forward, sliding to her knees in front of Willy.“Oh, thank god you’re safe!” Brody’s voice cracked while she embraced him in a hug. “Oh, sorry.” Her apologetic smile changed to an expression of concern when she noticed the bloody scratches on his face. Gently taking off her glove she placed it on her heart, summoning Ophelia once again. The droplets falling down froze in place and a warm, comforting feeling filled Willy’s chest. 

“Whoa! You have powers!” His eyes were practically sparkled with excitement. 

James’ voice rang in Clementine’s head once more. 

_I am thou, thou art I  
Thou hast acquired a new bond  
It shall become the voice of justice   
that soothes thine anguish from oppression_

_With the birth of the Magician Persona,  
One of action and determination  
I have obtained the tongue of truth  
That shall lead to balance and new power_

Clementine looked at Willy who seemed to still be holding on strong. _He really does fit that description._

Aasim cleared his throat.“Well, actually we all do.” Aasim commented, drawing the pair’s attention towards the others. 

“I’m glad that you’re safe.” Clementine knelt in front of him as well. “You were incredibly brave in there.”

“I’ll say! I can’t imagine going through that at your age, but you did it buddy!” Louis’ smile shone brightly towards him. 

“Wait, wait, you all have powers? Does that mean I do too?”

“We can tell you later.” Violet responded. “Right now we need to focus on getting out of here and finding a place to talk.”

The group all agreed to that, waiting for the sanctum to melt around them before heading over to Ericson and finding a quiet patch of grass. Clementine then began her long explanation about personas and the bizarre world that went with it.

“So you’re all superheroes and you save people?”

“Well, that sure is one way of looking at it.” Clementine replied with a kind smile.

“That’s so cool! I can’t believe I’m a real superhero now!”

“It is pretty awesome, but you need to be careful, buddy,” Louis warned, leaning on his arms.

“Louis is right. This has to be a secret. You can’t let anyone know that you have this super power.”

“Not even Mitch?” Willy looked around at the others.

“Not even Mitch,” Brody placed a gentle hand on his shoulder. “It’s so that it keeps all of us including Mitch safe.”

Willy looked saddened by the answer but nodded in agreement anyway. It only took a minute for his face to brighter up once again. “So what’s our team name?”

Louis let out a sad sigh. “We still need to figure that out.” He leaned his head back to look at the clouds before he seemed to be hit with a spark of inspiration. “How about the Exposers?”

One look from Violet made it clear that it wasn’t the right choice. “That makes us sound like a bunch of perverts.”

“I agree.” Aasim commented with a groan.

“Well, we’ll just have to come up with one sometime soon.” Clementine added, hoping to shut down the arguing. “We’d love to have you on the team. What do you say: wanna join us?” 

Willy looked around at all the happy faces; everyone truly did seem excited for him to join. “Yeah! We’re going to be the best superhero team in history!”


	22. A Heavy Decision Weighing Down a Heart

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Violet makes a decision that pains her heart.

Brody let out a yawn as she got up from her desk. There really was no way that she was going to pass her Intro to Chemistry class. Why she had chosen that as her science requirement was still beyond her. It clearly had been a bad idea. She was definitely going to have to retake it or chose another science class next semester. Hoisting her bag on to her back she made her way outside the building, walking towards the spot she and her friends usually hung out by the fountain. She knew none of them were going to be free to hang out right now, but she hoped the quiet would help her nerves settle down a bit. When she arrived there however she was met with a face she wasn’t expecting to see. 

There standing by the fountain was Mitch. His brown hair blew slightly in the wind when he turned to look at her. “Hey, Brody,” he lifted his hand up for a moment before walking over to meet her.

“Mitch, what are you doing here?”

“Well, I actually stopped by to see you.” His words caused Brody’s heart to skip a beat. Did she just hear him right?

“I wanted to thank you for helping Willy out the other day. When he came home he couldn’t stop talking about how you and your friends helped him.” Mitch’s face held a warm smile as he looked at her. 

“Oh, it was nothing. I’m just glad that we could help him.” Brody returned the smile towards Mitch. Mitch’s smile really was something else. Brody readjusted the science book in her hands, hoping to stop herself from getting further distracted by him. 

Mitch’s eyes fell down to the book.“Fuckin’ A! You take chemistry?” he asked, an excited tone filled his voice.

Brody looked down at her book. “Oh, yeah, but I’m doing pretty bad at it. Turns out it’s not my strong suit.” Brody gave a nervous smile while her gaze focused on the ground.

“I can help you if you want?” Mitch’s offer caused her eyes to shoot up to meet his. He shifted his weight a bit before continuing. “I was pretty good at that sort of thing in high school. So I might be able to help, but I could also just be shitty at the college level stuff.”

Brody’s eyes lit up at his offer. “I’d gladly take the help!” 

Mitch gave a small smile. “Just let me know when and I’ll help you out.” He glanced down at his watch. “Shit, I gotta get back to the store.”

“Wait!” Brody’s voice caused him to stop. “I don’t have your number.”

Mitch’s eyes widened at the realization. “Oh shit, you’re right,” He held out his phone. “Put in your number and I’ll do the same on your phone.”

Brody quickly grabbed his phone and after a few seconds their phones were back in their hands. 

With that, Mitch ran off to get back to his job. Brody felt her face get a little warm as she stared down at her phone which displayed Mitch’s number. She couldn’t believe it; she had his number.

\----

“So then I was trying to say this phrase in my French class, but messed it up when I sneezed.” Louis told his story, hoping to get some sort of reaction out of his friend who sat next to him. But Aasim seemed preoccupied by his phone. With a faint smile on his face as he sent a quick text. Louis leaned over, trying to check out what was so captivating. “Why are you texting Prisha?” Louis whispered right next to his friend’s ear which caused him to jump.

“Louis! Don't do that,” Aasim took a deep breath while he put his phone away. “As for your question, frankly it’s none of your business.”

Louis leaned back, annoyed by his response. “Well, sending chicken pictures sure seems like a bizarre text.”

“Even if I told you why, you wouldn’t understand,” Aasim stood up, grabbing his bag “I have English class.” Without another word Aasim walked away, leaving his friend more curious than ever about his texts.

Brody felt her heart race while she made her way to Mitch’s house. Luckily it was only a few blocks from campus. Unluckily for her it was only a short distance from campus meaning she didn’t have time to prepare herself. Opening up Discord she hoped that maybe reading through the chats would help her calm down. She was expecting to see something funny in the Team Fun server’s basic chat room, but she wasn’t expecting this.

Sing-us-a-song: _So serious question  
Do you send friends chicken pictures  
Or anyone chicken pictures_

Knife2meetU: _why the hell are you sending chicken pictures?_

Sing-us-a-song: _no  
I’m not   
@Aasim is_

Aasim: _Why have I been summoned?  
Oh, goodbye._

Sing-us-a-song: _no wait  
Don’t leave me without answering_

Sometimes the chatroom really was weird. Brody looked up and noticed that she was already at the right address. With a deep breath she walked towards the front door, knocking on it. It took a minute for anyone to arrive at the door. Brody glanced around and noticed the garage attached to the house with what looked like a scorch mark on the pavement surrounding it. She really didn’t have time to process and think on it when a loud crash came from inside followed by some muffled swearing. Suddenly the door swung open with Mitch who looked rather flustered. “Hey, Brody,” Mitch walked back, making room for her to enter. “Come on in.”

“Thanks,” Brody responded as she entered his house. It was a nice house. The front living was covered with different pictures: ones with Mitch and WIlly laughing together and others with the whole family. Brody paused when she recognized the lady in the picture. She was in the panels of Willy’s sanctum. 

“We can work in the back,” Mitch offered with a smile. 

Brody quickly snapped out of her own thoughts, nodding as she followed him. When all of the sudden she heard a familiar voice.

“Jack-a-Dandy!” Willy cried out, taking off the bucket on his head and dramatically tipping it forward. He slid across the floor before yelling the words again. Brody felt her heart stop for a moment. He was saying the name of his persona. Did that mean that Mitch was catching on to their secret?

“Sorry about my brother, he has a pretty active imagination and since his school had a day off he decided now would be the perfect time to play.” Mitch apologized, locking eyes with Brody before looking away. “Do you want a snack or anything?” 

“That sounds nice.” 

His smile grew at those words. “Alright, I’ll be back in a minute then.”

Within seconds he had disappeared into the kitchen. Willy turned around, tipping his bucket once again when he noticed her. “Brody!” Willy scampered over towards her. “Mitch, you didn’t tell me she was coming today!”

“What?” Mitch asked when suddenly a loud thud was heard in the kitchen “Ow, fuck!”

“You okay?” Brody’s voice was filled with concern.

“Yeah, yeah just hit my head.” Mitch’s voice called out from the kitchen.

“You wanna play with me?” Willy asked, an excited expression on his face. 

“I’d love to, but I got work to do today. Maybe next time.” Brody gave an apologetic smile.

Willy’s face brightened at those words.

“Just be sure to keep the secret safe.” Brody held out her pinky.

Willy nodded.“Of course!” He wrapped his pinky around hers. 

“I’m back. I hope some chips and soda are okay.” Mitch placed them on the back table.

“Yeah, that’s great.” Brody sat down at the table, pulling out her notebook and chemistry book. Mitch slid into the chair next to her.

“So what do you need help with today?” He leaned over to glance at her book. The two quickly got to work. Chemistry seemed to be Mitch’s strong suit. With his help Brody had gotten through more problems than she ever would’ve on her own. He was a pretty good teacher, helping her understand everything step by step. Before they knew it their time was up. 

“Thanks so much for offering to help me.” Brody said as she walked outside his front door.

“Glad I could help.”

“I’ll text you the next time that I’m free.” 

“Alright.” Mitch gave a small wave before closing the door. Brody walked down the street, feeling a sense of relief washing over her. Maybe she wasn’t going to fail her Intro to Chemistry after all.

\----

Clementine placed her bag down on the floor while she took her spot in Philosophy class. Louis sat down next to her with a huge smile on his face while Violet sat down on the other side of her. Clearly something was on her mind. She looked way too nervous for a philosophy lecture. 

“I like your nails.” Clementine looked over at her boyfriend who had a nervous smile on his face. 

“Thanks, Clementine held out her hand, looking down at the sunflower pattern. “Brody helped me.”

Before Louis could respond, Professor Walter’s voice rang out in the lecture hall signaling the beginning of class. 

“Good afternoon, class! How’s everyone’s day been?” The professor’s question was met with a collective series of mumbles. “Yeah, I get that. We’re pretty far into the semester now but still have a while to go. But hopefully today’s lecture will be fun for everyone.” Professor Walter’s bright smile shone towards the class before he turned to the whiteboard. “Today we’ll be talking about a famous philosopher who went by the name Aurelius. He helped bring forth a new view on philosophy.” The marker hit against the whiteboard as he spelled out the philosopher's name. “Does anyone know what the philosophical view was called?” His question was answered only with the sounds of awkward coughing and students shifting in their chairs. Clementine didn’t know the answer, but she did recognize the name. It was what Aasim’s persona was called. Louis and Violet seemed to pick up on that fact as well.

“No one?” the professor looked sad for a moment. “It was called Stoicism. It was taught as a way of having self-control over destructive emotions. Now that doesn’t mean it was used to erase all emotions nor did Stoics think they were bad.” His marker went over the whiteboard with such speed that all the students desperately tried to keep up with their notes. “The goal was to help a person obtain clear judgement, inner calm and freedom from suffering. To put it simply, you became free from passion through pursuing reason.” Professor Walter leaned on his desk for a minute, looking out. “Now you recently read a chapter on this very topic. Can anyone tell me the four virtues of Stoicism?” His eyes caught Clementine’s. “Clementine, would you like to take a guess?”

She paused her writing at those words. Her two friends looked at her, knowing they couldn’t be any help to her. “Umm,” Clem placed a hand under her chin, trying to recall the last chapter she read in her philosophy book. “I think it was prudence, justice, fortitude and……. Temperance.”

The professor clapped loudly, making it obvious that she had gotten the answer right.“Very good, Ms. Everett.”

Louis gave her a quick thumbs up.

“Now back to Aurelius. He tried his best to live up to the rules set about by Stoicism. He’s most well-known for his writings known as _The Meditations._ ” Professor Walter continued his talk, diving deeper and deeper into the intricacies of philosophy. It seemed to last for a long time, but eventually the class was over. “Be sure to finish your paper by the end of the week.” the professor called out as the students left the room.  
“  
Man, who knew Aasim’s persona was based on him.” Louis packed away his notebook into his bag. “Totally gotta talk to him about this in the chatroom.” Louis gave a mischievous smile. Clementine wasn’t sure exactly what her boyfriend had planned, but she hoped it didn’t get out of hand. Violet quickly stood up, walking towards the door.

“Hey Vi, I thought we were getting food after this.” Louis looked up towards her. 

“Go on without me. Something came up.” Without another word she disappeared down the hall. 

Violet wasn’t sure what she was expecting when she got the text from Prisha asking her if she was free after class. Violet had agreed to meet up after class by the walkway with all the trees covering the path. Making her way over, she couldn’t help but feel a mixture of excitement and nervousness. It only took her a few minutes to reach the meeting point. Violet paused when she noticed Prisha in a brown autumn coat; her eyes seemed focused on the trees around her. The warm orange and yellow leaves that had fallen around her seemed to add to her beauty. Violet felt her face get a little warm as she made her way over. Prisha’s eyes looked at her when she heard the sound of the leaves crunching underfoot. A cheerful smile played across her lips when she noticed Violet. 

“Hi.”

“Hey.”

“Sorry to send you that text all of a sudden. I hope I didn’t mess with any of your plans.” Prisha gave an apologetic look her way.

“It’s no problem. So, what’s up?” Violet asked, noticing that as soon as she did Prisha seemed to get more nervous for some reason. 

Her gaze focused on the ground. It took her a minute before she replied. Her eyes seemed to be filled with a determined look.“I need to tell you something.”

Violet looked at her, not saying anything, waiting for her to tell it.   
Prisha took a step forward, stopping right in front of Violet and looking her right in the eyes. “I like you. “ Prisha’s face took on a light blush. “As more than a friend.

Violet felt her heart stop at that moment. She couldn’t believe the words she just heard. _Holy shit._ Violet looked at Prisha. _Did I hear that right?_ She felt a strange warm feeling fill her heart. _She really likes me?!?_ “I like you too.” Violet whispered, her face growing warmer. 

Prisha’s face seemed to practically glow with happiness at Violet’s words. 

Violet’s heart was racing. Was this really happening? Without thinking Violet’s hand reached forward, brushing against Prisha’s. Her pinky reached Prisha’s and wrapped around it. Violet couldn’t remember a time that she felt as happy as she did now. Prisha liked her. The two stared at each other, warm, gentle smiles on their faces. Then suddenly Violet realized something. The very thought of it sent her emotions crashing back down. "I can’t be in a relationship right now.” Violet’s words cut through the moment, tearing it apart. Her pinky dropped from Prisha’s, falling against her side. Prisha’s face fell at those words. The look in her eyes caused Violet’s heart to break, but she couldn’t take it back. 

“Do you… know when you could be?” Prisha’s question made Violet’s throat feel dry, the sinking feeling growing stronger in her stomach. 

“I… I don’t know.” Violet’s eyes fell to the leaf-covered path. The silence between the two of them drew on from there. Never-ending, never-ceasing. Until Prisha spoke again.

“I should go.” Without even giving Violet a chance to react she turned around, disappearing from her view. Violet was left unsure whether she had made the right call. 

She couldn’t stop thinking about it. Those few moments where everything seemed perfect and then the cruel truth had set in. Violet pulled out her phone, texting the two people she could talk to. They responded quickly and soon Violet was on her way to the meet up spot. Brody and Clementine sat at a table, looking up when they noticed Violet approaching. 

“Is something wrong, Vi?” Brody looked over at her friend with concern. Violet didn’t look up at her friends. Trying to keep her emotions in check, she decided to stare at the ground. 

“Violet?” Clementine leaned forward. “What happened?”

Violet had to tell them. “Prisha told me she likes me.” Her words caused her two friends to look at each other with shocked expressions. Excited smiles were on their faces. “And I told her I liked her back.” Brody and Clementine were both so happy at the news until they paused. Violet’s words didn’t match her body language. 

“What happened next?” Clementine asked, unsure what her friend would say.

“I told her… that I couldn’t be in a relationship right now,” Violet’s voice faded near the end of the sentence.

“Why did you say that?” Brody asked, surprised by Violet’s words.

“Because I can’t be with her with what we do. We fight in another realm against these fucked up creatures all the time. I couldn’t risk Prisha getting caught up in that and being hurt.” 

Clementine remained silent at those words, but the opposite was true for Brody.

“Vi, sometimes you’re a real idiot, you know that?” Brody’s voice took a tone that was rarely heard by her. 

Violet’s eyes shot up at her words.“What did you say?” Violet hissed, angered by her friend’s words. 

“You heard me. You’re an idiot!” Brody spat back. “Why the hell do you think being with Prisha would automatically put her in danger?”

“Because of our powers!”

“She wouldn’t be dragged into that side of your life just because you’re dating. Did it ever occur to you that maybe you could be with her and not let her know about your powers?” Brody’s words made Violet’s eyes widen before hardening. 

“I don’t know if you’ve been paying attention, but the way we met Prisha was because she was onto us! Meaning that she would eventually find out about the other realm. Her curiosity would make it so that she would get dragged in!”

Brody stood up, causing her chair to fall over. “Even if that did happen, it wouldn’t necessarily be a bad thing! She could be a potential persona user like us. Meaning she could defend herself.”

Clementine tried to find the right time to comment, but the other two weren’t allowing any openings. Violet crossed her arms, glaring at Brody.

“We don’t even know what happens if you fail to accept it!” Violet’s voice cracked near the end. She knew what they all feared might be the case. “Even if she did succeed, you and I both know how hard that trial was! I could never put her through that.”

Brody could barely hold herself together as she glowered at Violet. There was a short pause in the conversation that Clementine took advantage of. 

“Brody, I think it’s best if you take a deep breath. Both of you should. Violet, I know why you did what you did.” Violet’s eyes looked down again at the ground at those words. “While Brody didn’t handle her points the best... “ Clementine held out a hand when Brody tried to object, “She does have good points. You don’t only have one option here. You don’t have to close off the option of being with Prisha. Just think about what Brody said, alright?” Clementine’s words seemed to cause the fighting to stop. 

Violet refused to look up at the other two. All of the sudden she stood up. Her eyes stared at Brody before turning around. “Fine.” 

Without another word she walked away, the very air around her filled with frustration and anger. Brody put the chair back in place and sat down with an annoyed groan. Clementine looked back and forth between her two friends, hoping that somehow she could find a way to help.


	23. A Painful Answer

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Another person enters their sanctum but things go awry.

It had been a few days since Prisha had confessed to Violet. The whirlwind of emotions that consumed Prisha that day still did as she made her way over to the table where her friends sat. She figured the best thing to do was try to be normal and polite. However, when she arrived there her emotions swelled up. Violet sat there talking to Louis as he was telling yet another story about his day. 

“So that’s when I-” Louis paused when he noticed Prisha, waving towards her and sliding over to let her join him. Prisha accepted the offer, sliding into the seat that was luckily on the opposite side of Violet. Her eyes quickly looked over in her direction before she tried to focus on Louis’ story. But she couldn’t. This whole situation was awkward. _She said she couldn’t be in a relationship right now after saying she liked me, but what does that even mean?_ Prisha’s mind couldn’t stop processing that day, that moment. Her feelings weren’t just going to go away overnight, not when they were this strong. 

“What do you think, Prisha? Is it possible to slip on a banana peel?” Louis’s question snapped her back to reality.

“Oh, um, I suppose it is possible.” she mumbled. 

“Ha! See, Vi!"

Violet crossed her arms and looked away. She wanted to come back with a snarky comment, but she couldn’t concentrate. This whole situation felt so awkward. She had made the right choice… hadn’t she? It was the responsible choice so then why did it hurt so much? Violet hated it, but she couldn’t take it back. She had wanted to get up the courage to try, but the fear of what might happen to Prisha always made her back away. Her feelings weren’t changing for her though. Every time she looked at Prisha she felt the same way, although now it was tinged with an underlying feeling of guilt. Prisha didn’t deserve the shit she had pulled. 

“Hey there!” Brody called out as she made her way over with Clementine. Violet’s gaze looked over at them before falling back to the ground. 

“So, how’s your day going?” Brody asked with a smile as she looked at her friends.

“It was going fine until Violet disagreed with me about if you can slip on a banana peel. But you totally can, right Prisha?” Louis looked over at Prisha who seemed lost in her thoughts.

“Well, I’m sure it is possible.” Brody commented leaning back in her seat. 

“Maybe if you’re a dumbass.” Violet’s tone took an edge to it as she looked at Brody. Violet quickly realized what she had done and got up to leave. “I have to go.” Without another word she left with no destination in mind. She just wanted to be alone.

\----

Clementine wasn’t sure what she could do. It was clear that the fight between Brody and Violet hadn’t fully resolved. As she walked towards the cafeteria her mind was so bogged down by it she barely heard her boyfriend call out to her.

“Clem!” He ran beside her, intertwining their fingers. “Mind if I join you?”

“Not at all. I’m just on my way to meet the others.”

Louis nodded, smiling a warm smile at her before his expression changed. “It's been a bit tense with everyone, hasn’t it? I can tell something’s up with Violet and Brody, but neither of them seem to stick around long enough to talk. Even when they do it’s clear they don’t wanna talk about it.” Louis’s eyes were heavy with concern.

“You’ve noticed it too?” Clementine looked over at her boyfriend.

“It’s kinda hard not to.”

“I’m not sure what to do.” Clementine stopped, her face falling. Louis swept up her other hand in his own. 

“Well, I’m sure it will work out. We always get through things together.” His cheerful smile caused her to mirror it. Her worries lessened a bit.

“Hey,” Aasim called from further down the walkway. “Over here!” his tone had a concerned weight to it. Louis and Clementine shared a look before running forward. When they caught up they had noticed the others were already there standing by a rift. 

“Shit,” Clementine stared at the rift. It never ended, did it? Her gaze then looked around the group. “Let’s head in.”

With the team’s approval she took a step forward, opening the rift. The team stumbled a bit as the familiar nauseous feeling consumed their stomachs for a minute before settling. Clementine looked around the room. It was covered from ceiling to floor with different polaroid pictures of a face she immediately recognized. It was the girl from her and Louis’s English class, Sarah. The pictures were a mix of nature pictures she had taken and pictures with her and a man that looked to be her dad. Both seemed so happy in the photos. Suddenly the sound of a camera click echoed through the room, repeating again and again as if a photo was trying to be taken but the shutter could never quite close. Brody took a step back, noticing that something was bizarre about the floor. Clementine’s eyes fell to the ground as well. They were standing on a giant camera lens. Its eerie gaze seemed to watch their every move. 

“Is this… Sarah’s sanctum?” Louis whispered, looking around only to wince when a bright flash consumed the room. The team all backstepped, blinking their eyes rapidly to try and readjust them. Louis looked around, desperately trying to see if what he thought could be here was here. His eyes widened when he saw the corridor breaking off between two of the walls. WIthout a second thought he ran down it. The rest of the team quickly followed his lead, reaching the all-too-familiar door. Louis let out a shaky breath. A wave of confusion twisted in the team’s hearts. They all knew immediately that Sarah must be in there if they were feeling this.

“All we can do is wait.” Clementine put a reassuring hand on Louis’ shoulder. The group slowly made their way to their spots and sat down. They knew their leader was right.

\----

Sarah felt the strength in her legs give out. Collapsing to the floor, she crawled over to the corner and wrapped her arms around her knees as she rocked back and forth. Where was she? All she remembered was that someone had been really mean to her for no real reason that she could place. When she ran off she made her way here only for a weird corridor to appear. She thought it was the exit but now she was in this strange room. Alone and afraid. She felt tears begin to escape from her eyes, streaming down her face. She didn’t want to be here; she wanted to go back to her dorm. She was so overcome by her emotions that it took her a moment to see someone across the room who looked just like her. They stood in the corner, staring at her with an upset expression. 

“Who are you?” Sarah’s voice shook with each word.

“I am you and you are me.” It took a step forward. “I know everything about you.”

“You… you do?” Sarah looked surprised by the construct’s words. 

“That’s right.” the construct strode forward, hovering over Sarah. “I know you so well that I can tell with one look how weak you are.”

Sarah’s eyes shot up, a mixture of confusion and shock filled them.

“Come on, don’t act surprised by it. It’s the truth after all. Can you honestly think of a single time that you were helpful?” It gave a wicked smile twisted with delight as it saw its words affect her. 

Sarah didn’t have a response. What could she say to that? “That’s.. not a nice thing to say.” she barely managed to get out before placing her face against her legs. 

“Oh, I’m sorry. Did I hurt your feelings?” it asked in a condescending voice. “How about this: I’ll stop saying it when you stop acting childish!”

Sarah felt her tears run more freely now. 

The construct’s body shook with laughter.

“Honestly, you’re such a baby there’s really no helping you. Every single step of the way someone has to help you because you’re so pathetic. You really are nothing.” Its voice suddenly changed to that of her father’s. “Sarah! Come on, I need you to listen to me! Do you even hear what I’m saying?” It sounded just like her dad that one time he raised his voice at her. Sarah felt herself shaking. How was this possible? What was going on? “Even your dad is done with you. After all, no one wants someone like you: weak, pathetic, pointless.” 

Sarah felt any sense of fight draining from her. The construct snapped its fingers, causing a contract to appear on the table.

“If you want to do one good thing with your life, you should sign it.” Even though the contruct’s voice was harsh with judgement there was an underlying sincerity to its words. They were so convincing. Sarah stood up, dragging her feet over to the contract. Was this the right choice? If it meant getting out of here, then it had to be. Her hand grabbed the quill and wrote down her name. Maybe they were right after all. Blood red ink spilled from the quill, her name glowing when it was completed. 

The construct let out a gut-splitting laugh as it leaned all the way back. “YES!” it cried out, its eyes glinting with delight. “THAT’S RIGHT! I AM YOU!!!!!” The construct disappeared into an orb and rushed towards Sarah's chest, hitting against her heart. Sarah stood confused by what just happened when all of the sudden she was hit with a cold feeling running through her veins. It felt as though the very life was being drained from her. She looked towards her hands before they dropped uselessly to her sides. She couldn’t stop this no matter how terrified she was. Bit by bit she felt her body shutting down, an overwhelming empty feeling consuming the very heart of her. She fell limp against the floor, her eyes losing all signs of life. 

\----

Clementine and her team had only sat down for a few minutes when something unexpected happened.

“What the fuck!” Violet jumped to her feet, her eyes glued to the door. The others’ eyes fell upon it, widening in shock at the sight. The door was suddenly covered in mildew, rotting more and more with each passing second. _What the hell is going on?_ Clementine felt her head begin to spin. The door let out a pathetic creak before falling forward, revealing the room inside. The team couldn’t believe what they saw. Sarah was on the floor, her body limp and lifeless. The five of them slowly walked into the room, unsure how to process what their eyes were seeing. 

Violet knelt before Sarah. Gently she grabbed her wrist, checking to see if she had a pulse. She waited and waited but she felt no pulse. “Shit, i don’t feel any-” Violet’s sentence was cut off by the faintest of pulses. She froze, waiting what felt like an eternity for another. There it was! But it was frighteningly slow, seeming to come only once every ten seconds or so. "She has a pulse, but I’m not sure if…” Violet couldn’t finish the sentence. The rest had the same thought as her. Was Sarah going to make it?

The silence in the room was suffocating until Louis took a sharp breath. His body shook slightly as tears began to fall. “I just saw her today. She… she was fine.” Louis mumbled. Aasim made his way over, wrapping an arm around his friend’s shoulder in hopes that it would help ease his pain. Brody stood there unable to process what had just happened. _This is what happens if you fail?_ She felt her stomach twist and turn. A strong urge to throw up was overwhelming her. Violet slowly walked forward, stopping when she was right beside Brody. 

“I was right.” Her voice cracked on the last word. Brody glanced over at her friend whose eyes carried a look of defeat. Any hope of changing her future with Prisha was crushed and replaced by cold, harsh reality. Without a word Brody reached out, wrapping her arms around Violet who seemed surprised for a moment before melting into the hug. The two stood there, arms tight around each other as they were overcome by their emotions. 

Clementine felt her heart break as she looked at her team, broken by the truth they had learned. A feeling of frustration filled her very core. How could Igor and James not warn her about this? If they were there to help her on her ‘path’, then why did they tell her nothing? She felt her fingers ball up into fists. This feeling wasn’t leaving. It only grew as the sanctum disappeared around them. The very foundation and walls crumbling around them. The rumble that fell hit useless through them.

The events that happened afterwards were all a blur. The team had called an ambulance for Sarah and after she was taken to a hospital the team separated for the day, defeated and overwhelmed by what had happened.

\----

Clementine tried to get some sleep that night, but her mind was spinning with images of Sarah’s body and her teammates’ reactions. It was only after many hours of those constant images that Clementine fell asleep and appeared in the one place she didn’t want to be. She looked around at the blue tinted courtroom. The same bloodshot eyes looked at her from the judge’s bench. The gavel was still frozen in midair.

“Ah, welcome back.” Igor’s smile seemed to cause Clementine’s stomach to twist in rage.

“Congratulations on another successful step in your journey.” James’ soft claps made her look over at the attendee.

Clementine looked back at Igor. “When the hell were you going to tell me that kids could be persona users? Or what could happen if you fail to accept your persona?” she spat, her eyes filled with anger. Igor just tilted his head and gestured to James.

“Persona users don’t have an age restriction. Anyone with the potential can have a persona.” James whispered in a matter-of-fact tone that pissed Clementine off.   
“  
So you were never going to tell me?”

James studied her eyes. “We are only here to help you on the path, Wildcard. Sometimes information will be brought to your attention outside of the Velvet Room.”

“But you knew the information and yet you didn’t tell me!” Clementine shot back, turning to face the attendee. “You were upset by Amelia’s fate yet you don’t seem to give a shit about Sarah’s!”

James looked confused by her words. “Her fate was due to her inability to look past the lies placed before her. All persona users have to push past them to be worthy.”

Clementine felt her anger rise at his words. “You think this is just a game?” Her voice cracked at her own words.

Igor’s gentle laugh caused her head to shoot over to look at him. “My, my, you really are quite the guest.” He extended his hand out. “Let us hope that no more obstacles such as this lay on your path.”

Did he really just call Sarah an obstacle? Clementine paused at his words, registering what he had just said. Was he implying that she could lose someone else that had the potential to wield a persona? Clementine bit down on her lip, breaking the skin. Storming forward, she stopped in front of the judge’s bench. 

“I won’t let it happen!” she shot out, her finger pointing towards Igor. “”I promise I will never let it happen again! I will do everything in my power to stop it!” Her voice echoed through the courtroom. 

Igor’s bloodshot eyes looked deeply into Clementine’s. A curious amusement shone in them. Letting out a small chuckle, he responded. “What a curious guest. Till we meet again.” 

Before Clementine could respond she was back in her reality. Sitting up in her bed, she stared around her room. Clementine felt a red hot anger boil within her. What was she supposed to do? Her eyes stung, withholding her unshed tears. 

Whatever came their way, Clementine would help her team. She would keep her promise and make sure this would never happen again.


	24. The Will to Carry on

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Clementine and her friends visit Sarah in the hospital.

Stretching her arms behind her back, Brody let out a small yawn. The desk chair leaned back with a groan from the weight she placed on it. She needed to get this assignment done before she met up with her friends. Looking around the desk, she noticed her small collection of sea shells. Grabbing one of the nearest ones, she ran her thumb against the back of it. Its pointy edges felt nice against her finger as she glanced down at the assignment. She only had one question left, but she was finding it hard to motivate herself. Her eyes continued to scan the room taking in the different decorations that her and her roommate had placed in their dorm. Along the windowsill were a variety of succulents that her roommate had gotten. Near that was the valerian plant soaking in all the sunlight it possibly could. It supposedly helps you sleep if you smell its flowers. Although the more effective way was to drink tea made from the root. Brody’s roommate had been so thoughtful in getting that plant in hopes that it would help Brody sleep. 

Surprisingly it actually did help. The sweet smell of vanilla that played on her nose when she smelled the flowers and helped her sleep. Although there had been more than a few times where her nose had gotten too close and instead took in the smell of the root which smelled closer to unwashed feet. Brody’s attention fell back onto the desk, staring at the photo frames that were proudly displayed on it. One showed her roommate and her smiling at their high school graduation while another was of the two of them in a lovely garden that they had decided to visit one day.  
Suddenly the room to the dorm swung open causing Brody’s attention to focus on it. A warm smile played across her lips when she saw who was there. 

“Hi, Ruby. How was class?” 

“It was pretty good. I have a lot of homework to catch up on, but the lecture today sure was fascinating.” Ruby walked over to her bed, sitting down on it before looking back at Brody.“I thought you’d be with your friends right now. You were going to visit that girl that fell into a coma just a few days ago, weren’t ya?”

“Yeah, I just need to finish up this last question for my psych class.” Brody replied, turning her attention back to her homework. The answer to the problem came to her almost immediately. Jotting down the answer, Brody closed her psychology book next to her assignment with a satisfying thud. 

“It’s nice of you and your friends to visit her.” Ruby walked over towards her, reaching upwards towards her plants. 

“It feels like the right thing to do,” Brody looked down at her phone, swearing internalling when she realized the time. “I need to go.”

“Alright, see you later tonight?” Ruby asked with a large smile.

“Yeah, I’ll see you then.”

“I’ll be sure to make some tea,”

Brody waved in acknowledgement of her friend’s words before opening the door and disappearing down the hallway. It didn’t take her long to reach the fountain where the other four waited. A large bouquet of sunflowers were in Louis’ arms. “I’m really sorry I’m late. I just got distracted.” Brody apologized while she caught her breath. The straps of her backpack fell slightly when she did so.

“That’s okay.” Clementine gave a reassuring smile towards her. “Let’s get going.”

The team quickly made their way over to the parking lot where they piled into Louis’ car. It only took them a few minutes to reach Richmond Memorial Hospital and only a minute to ask for the room number for Sarah. The group was silent as they made their way towards the door. Quietly sliding it open, the five of them shuffled inside the room. A constant beeping noise came from the monitor as Sarah continued her steady breathing. 

Violet made her way over towards the door. “I’ll be right back,” She ducked out, going to the bathroom to fill the vase they had brought with them. When she got back the others were still in the same spot as when she left. Placing the vase down gently on Sarah’s side table, she motioned for Louis who put the bouquet of sunflowers in. He had come up with the idea to bring the bouquet and the others all agreed, chipping in their share to buy the sunflowers and vase. 

Clementine stared at the monitor, a guilty feeling slowly capturing her gut. She was still so shocked by what had happened that day. If only she had known maybe she could’ve done something. It didn’t help that the Velvet Room seemed to only give out helpful information sparingly. Over the past couple days she seriously considered if she wanted to continue down this path that she had set out on. A crossroads seemed to have appeared before her. If she wanted she could convince the others to stop all of this. Stop being ‘heroes’ and live normal lives again. But looking at Sarah, Clementine knew immediately what she was going to do. If she abandoned this path it would just cause more people to end up like Sarah or like Amelia. As long as she had the power to try and help she would. It was the right thing to do. Glancing over at her friends, she noticed Violet seemed to be deep in thought as well.

Violet felt a sickening feeling enter her stomach. She couldn’t believe that this had happened. The group had always been cautiously curious about what might happen if someone failed to accept their persona. But for this to be the answer felt so cruel. Her fear had become reality: even if Prisha did have the potential to wield a persona, she could end up like this. The very thought caused Violet’s stomach to turn. As her eyes studied the scene before her, she felt a newborn resolve develop. _No matter what, I’ll make sure this never happens to Prisha._

Her fingers balled up into fists, her emotions surging through her. Taking a deep breath, she hoped to release the overwhelming emotions. Suddenly the hospital door opened, a middle-aged man walking in. He stopped when he noticed the others. His eyes widened in shock as his mind processed what was happening. “Who are you?” his voice cracked from the dryness of it. No doubt from all the tears he had shed from the look in his eyes.

Clementine stepped forward. “Sorry sir, we go to Ericson and some of us were classmates of Sarah’s,” Clementine gestured towards the comatose girl. “We just wanted to drop off some flowers.”

“Hopefully they make her happy,” Louis added from behind Clem, his eyes filled with sadness as he glanced at Sarah.

The man’s face brightened slightly at their kindness. “That’s very nice of you. I’m glad to see Sarah had some good friends at college.” He made his way over to the chair that was placed beside the bed and gently grabbed her hand. “It’s all a father could hope for his daughter.” His brown eyes were watery. The group stood in silence, unsure what to say until Louis spoke up.

“If you want, we can share some stories about Sarah.” he offered with a gentle smile. Sarah’s father looked up, taking in the words for a moment. 

“That sounds very nice,” he paused, “I’m sorry, I didn’t get your names.”

“I’m Louis,” Louis gestured towards himself. “Next to me is Clementine, then there's Brody, Aasim and Violet.” 

Everyone gave a small nod or gesture to Louis’ introduction. 

“I’m Carlos.” the man responded, casting his gaze back on his daughter. Unsure what else to do, Louis began to tell some stories about his interactions with Sarah. The others stood around, their hearts feeling some relief when they saw the small smile across Carlos’ face. The team stayed for as long as they could, but soon it was time to head back. “Thank you for visiting.” Carlos called out to them. The group turned around, looking back towards the hospital room.

“It’s the least we can do.” Clementine said, holding open the door for her friends. 

“If it’s alright with you, could we visit again?” Brody asked, her voice shaky from her nerves.

Carlos’ eyes warmed at those words.“That would be nice. I’m sure Sarah would appreciate it.”

With that the team left the room, silently shutting the door behind them. 

“Do you think she’ll ever wake up?” Brody whispered to her friends as they made their way down the hospital corridor. 

“It’s unclear,” Aasim commented. “All we can do now is hope that someday she will.”

“I’m sure visiting will help.” Louis added, trying to encourage the others and himself. 

“I’m sure it will,” Clementine laced her fingers with his.

“Hopefully,” Violet whispered, leading the way towards the car. After a short, silent drive the group split off. 

\----

Brody made her way off campus towards Mitch’s house. Even though all of these crazy events had played out she still needed to focus on her studies. Walking towards the front door, she knocked on it gently. A loud crashing sound and some muffled words emitted from inside the house before Mitch opened it, smiling when he saw it was Brody. The two sat together working on a chemistry assignment when Mitch stopped his sentence. “Hey Brody, are you okay?” 

His words caused Brody to look over with surprise.“Why do you ask?”

“Well, it’s just you seem sort of down today.” He awkwardly kicked his foot under the table.

Brody’s face fell; her gaze focused on the floor.“It’s just my friends and I visited someone we know who’s in a coma. The doctors aren’t sure when or even if she’ll wake up.” 

Mitch’s eyes looked over at Brody, a mixture of concern and sadness swirled inside them.“Shit, I’m sorry to hear that. If you want we could call it a day and not work on any more chemistry.”

Brody shook her head at his words. Even though she appreciated his concern and offer she needed to focus on something else. “I’d rather keep working if that’s okay.”

“Of course,” Mitch shifted his weight in his chair, trying to find the page that they were working on. The two worked on different assignments for two hours or so. 

Slowly getting up from her chair, Brody grabbed her backpack. “Thanks for all the help. Are you sure you don’t wanna get paid? It doesn’t seem fair.” 

Mitch waved a hand dismissively at her offer. “Don’t worry about it. Just glad I can help.” He held open the door for her.

“Alright, then I’ll see you next week?” Brody looked over her shoulder back at Mitch.

“Yeah, see you then.”

Brody gave one final wave making her way down the street back to Ericson. Glad that her final homework assignment of the day was done and that she got to return to her dorm where Ruby waited with a hot pot of tea. 

\----

Clementine could feel the stress building within her over the last few days. The tension gathered deep within her back. Luckily it seemed like all her friends were doing okay. At least as well as they could after what had happened. Strolling over to her mailbox she pulled out the small key, twisting it within the keyhole until a faint click was heard from within. _There probably isn’t much of anything in there._ Her thoughts were quickly proved false when she was greeted by a large plush orange. Its kawaii face smiled back at her. Pulling it out of her mailbox, Clem noticed a small note fall out and land at her feet. Picking it up and reading it, a warm smile played on her face.

_Dear Clem,  
I know things have been pretty crappy lately. With everything that has been going on your birthday had gone and passed and I failed to do anything.  
So to make up for my shortcomings, I’ve put together a few gifts inside your mailbox.  
P.S. Meet me in practice room C in the music Building at 3.   
-Louis_

His lovely cursive writing caused Clementine's heart to swell. Putting away the note, she looked back into her mailbox and noticed the other presents mentioned in the note. Two books laid on top of each other. One was a pun book filled with more than 200 puns to use in everyday life. The other was a book on Egyptian mythology. A sticky note attached to it mentioned how it may help her learn more about Ma’at. Glancing down at her watch, she noticed that it was a quarter to 3. Closing the mailbox door and tucking away her gifts, she made her way to the music building. 

A giddy excitement made her heartbeat quicken with each step. As she entered the room she was met with a bright smile from her boyfriend who sat by the piano. Taking a seat beside him, Clementine noticed his face held a slight blush.

“I’m glad you were able to find my notes. Were the gifts okay?” he asked shyly, his fingers tracing one of the piano keys. 

“They were great, Louis.” Clementine replied with a smile.

“Well, your gifts don’t end there,” He reached into his coat jacket, producing a small black box. Clementine accepted the gift, staring at the box with curiosity before opening it. Inside was a silver piano key, the initials C+L beautifully etched in the middle. Clementine felt her breath catch in her throat as she took in the thoughtful gift.

“Do you like it?” he asked, nervously scratching the back of his head.

Clementine looked up at her boyfriend, a bright smile pulled on her lips. “I love it.” 

Louis’ face practically beamed at her words. “Here,” He took the necklace out of the box. “Let me help you put it on.”

Clementine turned her back to her boyfriend who gently fastened the chain to the clasp. The piano key swayed back and forth slightly. The delicate silver complemented her look. Turning around, she placed a soft kiss on his cheek.“Thank you, Louis. All these gifts today have been so amazing.”

Louis gave a goofy grin in response to the kiss he had just received. “Oh, but that’s not all my dear Clementine,” he turned back towards the piano. “For there is one final gift for you.”

Slowly he began to play a song on the piano. It wasn’t one Clementine had ever heard before. She would’ve remembered such a soft song. Its notes danced in the air as Louis continued to play. It took her a moment to realize based on how nervous he had been acting that he must’ve written that song for her. A warm feeling filled her heart when she looked at her boyfriend. The music caused her heart to dance with each note. She looked at him while he played, a warm expression on his freckled face. How had she gotten so lucky to find someone like him? Before she knew it the song had finished. Louis looked over at her, a shy look on his face. 

“So, did you like the song?”

“I loved it. Did you write it?” Her question seemed to cause him to get a bit flustered.

“Yeah, I know it was a pretty simple song, but-”

“It was beautiful.” Clementine leaned forward, placing a loving kiss on his lips. Louis seemed shocked for a moment before he leaned into the kiss. Pulling apart, the couple looked into each other’s eyes.“Happy belated birthday, Clem,” Louis’ face was dusted in a blush.

Clementine felt her heart swell up once more. She really couldn’t believe how lucky she was. 

\----

Aasim felt a yawn forming from within. It soon overtook him, causing his whole body to relax when it was released. He had to get to his next class. He couldn't afford to miss even a single minute of the history lecture. As he made his way down the hall he froze when he heard yelling coming from inside one of the rooms.

“I can’t believe this bullshit!” an angry voice yelled from inside the room. “Ten years I’ve worked here and just like that you’re firing me!?!”

“I’m sorry, Badger, but with the new budget set this year we can’t afford to keep on all the janitors.” an apologetic, meek voice appeared from inside the room as well.

“Then fire the other guy, not me!”

“I can't. This goes above my head.”

“I can’t believe this!” A loud crash came from inside the room, causing Aasim to flinch.

“Badger, if you don’t calm down I’m going to have to call security.”

“Fine, do it! See if I give a shit!” the voice spat back. 

Aasim was wondering what he should do when all of the sudden the door swung open. A bald guy with a beard stormed out, pushing Aasim out of his way.

“Move it!” he snapped, not even glancing back as he made his way towards the exit. Aasim was still trying to process what was happening when the other person appeared: a mousy looking gentleman who awkwardly twisted his hands together as he trotted over towards him. 

“I’m so sorry, are you okay?”

“Yes, I’m fine.” Aasim commented. His legs began to walk forward again, making their way to his next class. He didn’t have time to focus on that right now. 

Sing-us-a-song: 

Knife2MeetU: _learn how to spell_

Sing-us-a-song: _I refuse_

Aasim: _if you have time for this you have time to study_

_Aasim has used the forbidden word “study”._

Aasim: _What?  
Louis!  
You can’t ban the word study._

_Aasim has used the forbidden word “study”. It has been ten seconds since he had last used the word._

Aasim: _Dammit Louis!  
You need to unban that word._

Sing-us-a-song: _Don’t tell me what to do mom_

_Sing-us-a-song has used the forbidden word “mom”_

Sing-us-a-song: _What the shit!?!  
You can’t keep me away from my mother_

Aasim: _I’m not your mother_

Violet laughed as she watched the chaos ensue. _I guess there are perks to being a Mod._

“What’s so funny?” Clementine glanced up from her philosophy book.

“Nothing, just some stupid shit on Discord,” Violet mumbled, picking up her pencil once again.

Clementine was about to ask what had gone down on Discord when the loudspeaker near them made a static sound before coming to life. 

_ATTENTION, ALL STUDENTS! A bomb threat has been made. All classes will cease at once. We ask that you stay where you are until the bomb squad arrives._

Clementine and Violet shared a worried look. Was this really happening?


	25. Every Battle A Risk

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The campus is at risk so the team gathers to enter a malum.

It took the two of them a minute before the announcement had fully registered. Violet looked towards Clementine who seemed to have the same idea in mind. Zipping open her backpack, she pulled out the campus map. As she unfolded it Violet’s gaze focused upon it, waiting to see if they were right. When the map was finally fully open the pair looked over the map thoroughly. 

“There!” Violet pointed towards the western section of campus. There, by Building N was a blinking red dot eerily symbolizing a malum. 

Clementine rummaged through her pockets, taking out her phone and opening up the #assemble chat in Discord.

OrangeuGlad: _Malum has appeared by Building N. Violet and I think it’s the bomber’s._

Aasim: _Shit, on my way._

Sing-us-a-song: _Wait  
Someone needs to help me sneak and get the weapons  
They're still in my dorm room. _

Aasim: _I’ll help. Louis and I will be by the building in ten minutes._

OrangeuGlad: _Be careful  
be fast_

Bro: _I’m heading over now_

Clementine placed away her phone.“Louis and Aasim are going to grab the weapons and meet us at the spot in ten minutes. Brody is on her way.”

“Fuck,” Violet whispered, causing Clementine to look over in concern. “My meat cleaver is still in my dorm. I’ll be fast.”

Without even giving Clementine a second to respond, Violet was already off like a shot. Clementine turned towards the west, sprinting off towards Building N. She hoped her friends would be able to make it to the spot soon. There was no telling when the bomb may go off. 

\-----

Louis felt his stomach twist and turn as he made his way slowly up the stairs with Aasim. They needed to sneak into his dorm room without anyone noticing. The announcement had told everyone to stay where they were. Luckily Marlon had a kinesiology class right now so the dorm room would be empty. Aasim seemed to pick up on Louis’ nerves, placing a hand on his shoulder to reassure him that everything was going to be okay. Louis glanced back at his friend and gave an appreciative smile before stopping by his dorm. Quietly opening the door, the two of them snuck into the room.

“Is your room always this messy?” Aasim questioned, looking around at all the clothes scattered across the floor. Empty bags of chips and pudding cups laid haphazardly on the desk next to a trashcan which had a small basketball net over it.

“Yeah, probably.” Louis sidestepped a pile of clothes, pushing open the closet that held the weapons. His arms wrapped around them as he turned to face Aasim who took his share of the items. The pair made their way back into the hallway, glad that the first part of the mission had been a success.

\-----

Clementine felt her heart tighten a bit as the time continued to pass. Only Brody and herself were at the location. _I hope the others come soon._ Clementine looked over and noticed just how nervous her friend was. Brody had closed her eyes, focusing on keeping her breathing steady as the anxiety rose inside her. Walking over towards her, Clem gently placed her hand on Brody’s shoulder. Brody’s eyes shot open at this gesture, a small smile appearing when she saw who it was. “It’s going to be okay, Brody. The others will be here soon and we’ll deal with the malum.”

“I know, it’s just… What if the bomb goes off while we’re in the malum? If that happens then that could mean that Ruby could-” Brody’s sentence had faltered out, her breathing becoming more rapid.

Clementine’s eyes widened in realization at the statement her teammate had made. She had been so focused on getting into the malum that she didn’t think about that fact. So many people could end up getting hurt if they failed this or weren’t fast enough. Innocent students, all of her teammates’ different friends, Prisha. They couldn’t fail this one. But she also couldn’t let Brody sense that she was extremely nervous too. Putting on a brave face, Clementine gave her best reassuring smile. “We’ll succeed. I know it.” Brody still seemed a bit unsure about it, but the determination burning in Clem’s eyes made her breathing calm down. 

“Hey, sorry.” Violet ran forward, stopping in front of her friends. Her attention was immediately drawn behind her when she heard footsteps. Looking back she saw Louis and Aasim holding on to the weapons. When they had gotten to them they passed around the items. 

“Is everyone ready?” Clementine looked at her team. Each of them seemed so tense with this one. They all knew the consequences if they failed. They all nodded, a mixture of fear and determination in their expression. Clementine was about to step forward to open the malum when Louis spoke up.

“Wait!” the team paused at his exclamation. “ _If_ we make it out of this one, we should celebrate. I know this really cool disco roller skating place. I think it would be a blast.” Louis winced at his own poor choice of words, his face falling with a nervous expression on it.

“ _When_ we make it out, I think we should celebrate.” Clementine stated, looking back at her boyfriend who seemed appreciative of the support. The others seemed to agree to the proposal pretty quickly.

“Fine, but let’s focus; we don’t have much time.” Violet commented. Clementine ran forward, opening up the malum that consumed the team. They all staggered when they arrived, a confused expression etched across each of their faces when they looked around. Was this the campus? Clementine could feel the tension around them continue to build as her team’s anxieties rose. It was tense enough dealing with a malum, but to have it mirror the campus made everyone’s stomach twist. There trapped behind a protective barrier was the rift opening. Laid across the Ericson gate. An overwhelming feeling of malice consumed the team’s guts.

“Be cautious,” Clementine warned her friends who all were in a defensive stance while they scanned the room. Brody’s voice caught in her throat when she tried to signal to the others. Luckily their attention was drawn towards where she was gesturing anyway. What looked to be a college student was walking towards them, pausing when they noticed them. The student looked completely normal except for the terrified expression overtaking their face. Suddenly black ooze started to pour out of their eyes and mouth, their body twisting and squirming as the ooze covered them. The shadow that stood before them still looked disturbingly human.

“The heart,” Aasim pointed towards the shadow. There on its chest was a beating heart. Overlaying it was a timer which went down each time the heart beat. 

“Shit,” Louis mumbled, unsure how to deal with the opponent in front of him.

“Persona!” Clementine cried out, calling forth Ma’at. “Everyone, take a step back.” Clem then proceeded to send a series of wind attacks against the enemy. Its body fell towards the ground and after a few seconds it exploded, leaving a scorch mark where the shadow once stood. “Attack them from afar,” Clementine instructed her team while more shadows appeared. Everyone listened to her advice, taking out a shadow each with relative ease and waiting for the explosion. 

“It seems to take eight seconds for them to explode!” Aasim yelled, adding to their arsenal of knowledge. While mostly everyone had a far away attack that could take out an enemy, Violet wasn’t so fortunate. She would have to risk it if she wanted to help out this time. There was no time for second guessing. Ripping off her glove and slamming against her heart, Violet summoned La Guillotine. Sending her persona to deal with one of the shadows, she ran forward, embedding her meat cleaver into her opponent. Using one of her legs she pushed it back, releasing her weapon and giving her just enough time to backstep. At least far enough that she only felt the push of the explosion that sent her skidding across the floor. 

“Violet!” Louis called out in concern when he saw her.

“I’m fine, just focus!” she yelled back, finishing another enemy.

Soon the team had cleared the area, making a door appear which they hoped led to the bomber. Clementine led the group, carefully opening the door to reveal a hallway similar to one they would find in any campus building. The lockers on the wall layered each side, leading to the door at the end of the hall. They cautiously stepped forward, hoping to make their way there without running into more enemies. But life was never that easy. The lockers began to rattle as students fell out of them, morphing into shadows. This was not an ideal place to deal with these types of shadows. 

Clementine motioned for the others to stay behind her as she sent wave after wave of wind magic. Taking out the majority of them at the same time meant the room was safe to traverse, but also that the explosion was bigger. “Persona!”

Brody hit her hand against her heart, immediately ordering Ophelia to use an ice shield to block the pieces of wall and lockers that flew at the team. It only lasted for a few seconds before it shattered but it had completed its task. Louis let out a bolt of lighting that zapped the last shadow. Taking a moment to make sure the room was clear, the team ran forward not knowing how much time they had left. Within seconds they were in front of the door that stood at the end of the hall. Clementine opened it and saw the bomber. Aasim felt his stomach drop slightly when he recognized who it was. 

“It can’t be…” Aasim mumbled.

“What?” Brody asked, looking over at him.

“ I know him. I think his name was Badger. I overheard an argument he had with someone. He was getting fired,” Aasim’s face fell. “If i had known, then maybe….”

Clementine shook her head. “There was nothing you could do that would stop him from enacting this. From the looks of him he seems pretty far gone in terms of morality.”

A disturbing smile played on Badger’s lips when he glared up at the group.“Well, it seems I have company. What the hell are you doing here?” he sneered, a crazy look entering his eyes.

“We’re here to stop you.” Violet stated, wielding her meat cleaver.

“Tell me, why are you doing this?” Aasim asked to which Badger let out a spine-shivering laugh. 

“They fired me, so I thought I’d give them a little goodbye gift to just show them how much they messed up.”

Louis’ expression twisted in shock.

“Even if they were wrong to fire you, it doesn’t give you the right to do this.” Brody’s voice shook with her words, a genuine sadness lingered within it. Badger didn’t seem to care though.

“I don’t give a fuck what you think is right!” he spat, glaring at Brody. The team instinctively shielded her from his gaze. 

“Even if you were justified in lashing out, there’s no need to add innocent people into this,” Clementine slowly raised her sword. “We’ll stop you no matter what from shedding blood over a meaningless tantrum.”

Badger’s face twisted in disgust and rage before a cocky smile appeared on his lips. “Brats should just learn when to shut the fuck up. I’ll make them pay. I’ll make all of you pay!” His body snapped backwards, a disturbing laughter leaving his mouth as his body morphed until it looked like his very skin was different bomb components. A small red light flashed for a mere second on his right arm. The team stood at the ready, their personas hovering in the air behind them. Aasim made the first move, shooting a fireball towards Badger’s right arm. It exploded on impact as his left arm suddenly flashed with the same small red light. Aasim smirked - it was just as he had hypothesized. 

“Don’t let him hit you with the body part that glows.” Aasim stated, taking out his sai. Clementine and the others seemed to understand his message, but it didn’t seem like it had given them much of an advantage. Badger lunged forward with his broom which had morphed into a sharp bo staff. It connected against its first target: Clementine. She let out a pained hiss as it tore into her arm. Jumping back she sent a wind attack towards the ground, causing Badger to lose his balance. The others left a bigger gap between them and their enemy. Louis’ eyes were focused on the wound on his girlfriend’s arm. Clenching his teeth, he sent a strong wave of thunder that consumed Badger’s whole body. An explosion erupted from his arm. The red light moved toward his chest. Clementine and the others continued to dodge his attacks. With the help of Brody’s healing magic, a warm comforting relief enveloped Clem’s arm. Fifteen seconds had passed when all of the sudden the red light moved to his face. 

“Fifteen seconds.” Clementine’s message got through to the others. They now knew two things: First, to not hit the body part that glowed unless from a safe distance. Second, the explosion changed spots every fifteen seconds. They could work with this. Timing their attacks wisely, the group slowly began to chip away at their opponent’s health, sending wave after wave of attacks while dodging his own. He was fast and aggressive, hitting them in weak spots when they had avoided the attack meant to explode against them. Brody kept a close eye on her friends, healing and shielding them when she could, but she was getting drained of her magic. Their tactics were working though. Soon Badger stood shakily on his feet. One more attack would take him out. 

Dashing forward, Violet raised her meat cleaver. She knew she still had time to attack; only five seconds had passed since the transition to the next explosion spot. By the time she was in position to attack ten seconds had passed. All of the sudden the bright red light appeared on his chest, directly where she was attacking. _What the fuck? I should still have five seconds._ She couldn’t stop her attack though nor could she get far enough away to avoid the blast. Violet’s eyes hardened with resolve. _I’m at least going to take you down with me!_

“Violet!” Louis’ voice cracked when he saw what was happening.

Brody watched as her friend moved closer to her impending doom. She wouldn’t let this happen. She couldn’t lose one of her friends. “Ophelia!” her voice shook as she ordered her persona to do the only move that may save Violet. The droplets froze around Ophelia, swarming towards Violet and enveloping her in a sphere of ice. When the sphere collided with Badger’s chest it cracked open, sending Violet flying back, crashing into a nearby desk and slumping over. 

“Damn it,” Aasim hissed, sending a whirlwind of flames towards Badger. “Brody!”

Brody snapped her attention back on her enemy, her knuckles white as she held onto her trident. She threw it through Aasim’s flame attack. It impaled Badger’s chest with ease, causing him to fall over and revert to his original form. He reached out, trying to will himself to keep fighting, but soon disappeared from the spot. They had done it, but at what cost?

The rest of the team sprinted over to Violet who let out a groan as she rolled her head back. 

“Violet! Oh, thank god!” Louis felt his body relax.

“I-I can’t see.” Violet murmured, fear dripping with each word as she tried to feel around. Violet’s face was covered in all sorts of cuts. The blood had poured into her eyes.

“I’m so sorry, Vi! I was trying to protect you with that ice shield.” Brody’s healing magic reached out to Violet’s face, healing the various wounds and causing the blood to disappear around her face. Clementine let out a shaky breath she hadn’t realized until now that she had been holding. Leaning forward, she wrapped her arms around Violet. The others soon joined in. 

“Shit, Vi, you have to be more careful.” Clementine whispered. 

“Yeah, we almost lost you.” Louis’ voice barely made it through that sentence.

Violet wanted to say something but she couldn’t think of anything so instead she embraced her friends back. After a moment the walls started to shake as rubble fell down. 

“We need to leave.” Aasim commented, standing up and offering Violet a hand. The team quickly stood up to their feet, sprinting through the rooms, sidestepping the debris as it fell. Clementine’s hands reached out to the gate where the rift opening stood. In a moment the group was back and safe in the real world. The information on Badger and the bomb’s location entered Clem’s mind. As soon as they had arrived back in their world, their phones buzzed like crazy.

“Oh shit,” Louis looked down at a few worried texts from Marlon. He quickly sent a few back, reassuring his friend that he was safe. Sophie and Minnie had sent a few texts as well to which Violet sent a quick response. Lee’s texts to Clementine made her heartache at the fact that they couldn’t send texts while in the other realm. Sending a reassuring text she placed away her phone. Brody’s phone continued to ding constantly with texts and missed calls from Ruby. 

“I’m going to call Ruby,” Brody motioned to her phone before walking away a few feet. The whispers of her conversation floated across the air. It was clear how worried Ruby had been for Brody. 

“Clementine, if you give me the information I can place the anonymous tip,” Aasim offered, walking to stand beside her. 

“That would be great.” Clementine paused her sentence when she noticed the look on Violet’s face. “Violet?”

Violet glanced up.“There’s somewhere I need to go.” Without another word, Violet sprinted off across campus.

Violet couldn’t believe how much of an idiot she had been. It took her face nearly being blown off to get her to realize something. She wanted to be with Prisha, no matter what. Her legs burned as she ran across campus, trying to remember the directions towards Prisha’s apartment that was nearby. Life had always been so shitty to her that of course when something good actually came along she had pushed it away. Fuck the consquences. She was going to tell Prisha that she wanted to be with her. 

Her heart stopped for a moment when fear overtook her thoughts. What if Prisha had already moved on? It wasn’t like she promised to wait for Violet or anything. Why would she when Violet had given her a half-assed hope that maybe one day Violet would pursue a relationship with her? Pushing aside the fear, she ran around the corner, hitting the side of her hip hard. _Shit._ Hopping for a minute and rubbing her hand against her hip, she continued down the path that led to the apartment. Tossing open the door she made her way to the stairs, her throat burning while she jumped past steps in hopes that she would get to Prisha faster. The edge of her toe bent backward against one of the steps, causing her to hiss in pain.

“Fuck,” Violet pushed open the door, making her way down the hallway that led to Prisha’s room. She paused when she recognized the door where Prisha’s name stood in her beautiful cursive writing. Without even letting herself catch her breath, she knocked on the door. It only took a moment for the door to open. Prisha stood there, shocked by who stood before her.

“Violet? What are you doing here?” She looked at Violet with concern, her brown eyes searching Violet’s face for answers. 

Now that Violet had reached the destination she wasn’t sure what to say. She always sucked with words. Now when she needed them more than ever they failed her. How was she going to tell Prisha how sorry she was? How she wanted to be with her? Slowly she reached her hands up, cupping Prisha’s face. Leaning forward, she captured her lips in a deep kiss. All of her emotions poured through the kiss as she fell deeper and deeper into it. It felt as though she could be lost in it until she pulled back, her head spinning. From the look on Prisha’s face, it seemed she had felt similarly. 

“Violet,” Prisha’s face lit up with a bright smile. “What was that for?”

She noticed that they were still standing in the doorway and quickly shut it behind them. Prisha offered Violet a seat on her couch which she gratefully accepted while Prisha joined her.

“Prisha, I want to be with you.” Violet’s words were finally working. Her own face brightened when she looked towards Prisha.

Prisha gave a surprised look before a light blush covered her face. 

“I realized that life is short and you should go after the things that make you happy,” Violet awkwardly rubbed the side of her arm.

“Wow, it sounds like you almost had a near death experience,” Prisha said jokingly when all of the sudden Violet leaned forward and kissed her again. It lasted for only a moment when Violet pulled away.

“Shit, sorry that was probably too much.” Her gaze focused on the floor.

“No, I liked it,” Prisha replied with a warm smile which made Violet feel as though she could melt right then and there. “And Violet, I want to be with you too.”

Violet couldn’t believe it. This was really happening. She felt her heart soar as she looked towards Prisha. Even though she knew it was impossible she wished this moment could last forever. Suddenly Violet felt her head spin. All of the adrenaline from the last few minutes was spent. Her body fell forward, exhausted from the malum. The last image her eyes captured was Prisha’s worried face.

\------

Violet felt her eyes flutter open as her body woke up. She felt such a calming warmth within her that it took her a moment to realize that she was still in Prisha’s apartment. What was more surprising was when she looked up she saw Prisha’s face covered by a book. Was she in Prisha’s lap? She shifted slightly, causing Prisha to look down. 

“Oh, Violet you’re up,” Prisha set aside her book. “I was so concerned when you passed out.”

“Am I…” Violet didn’t even have to finish her sentence to get the answer. 

“Oh yes, my apologies. You just fell forward and I didn’t want to move you when I wasn’t sure if you were okay. I’m sorry. This is probably too much.”

“No, it’s okay.” Violet mumbled, lying through her teeth. This was so much to take in. Her feelings were overwhelming her, but she also couldn’t deny that she liked it. The two of them shared a gentle smile when another realization popped up in Violet’s mind. “Shit,” Violet sat up.

“What? What’s wrong?” Prisha looked over with concern.

“Oh, no, sorry. Nothing’s wrong. It’s just-” Violet looked over at Prisha, nervousness overtaking her body once again. “My friends and I are going to go rollerskating at this disco place and, well…” Violet scratched the back of her head with a shy look on her face before she reached out her hand. “Would you like to go with me as my girlfriend?” 

Violet’s question made Prisha’s face blush more. An excited smile played on her lips. “I’d love to.”

Violet felt her heart skip a beat. She’d never felt this happy before.


	26. Time to Get Funky

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The team celebrates another victory.

Clementine felt the excitement in her stomach rise up with each passing minute. After the crazy last few weeks she and her friends had it seemed like the perfect idea to have fun and blow off some steam. Sitting beside her boyfriend, she waited along with Brody, Aasim and Violet for the final member to show up. Louis lazily kicked his legs back and forth, his thumb gently rubbing the side of Clementine’s thumb as they held hands. Violet seemed unusually excited as well, but Clementine had doubts that it was about going disco roller skating with them. But she couldn’t quite place what it was. Maybe it was that they had survived their craziest challenge yet as a team. To think that not only their lives but the lives of their loved ones were at stake in the last few days made Clementine even more thankful that they were going to focus on something fun. Her mind seemed to be getting more weighed down by all that was happening, but it would be nice to have a few hours of escape from such heavy thoughts. 

“I’ve never been disco roller skating,” Brody’s voice caused the others to look over at her. “Have you guys?”

“Nope,” Aasim stated, simply turning his attention back to the book he had been reading.

“I haven’t either.” Clementine added which seemed to make Louis shocked. His eyes brightened a second later though when he spoke.

“I can’t believe you’ve never been disco roller skating! It’s so much fun! Marlon only went with me once or twice, but now that you’re all coming I get to show off my skills!” Louis pulled on the sides of his coat with a proud smile on his face. 

Violet let out a short snort. “You? Skills?” she gave him a snarky smile to which Louis replied with his own sassy face.

“Just you wait and see.” 

“Isn’t your friend Marlon meeting us there?” Brody asked, taking a seat by the fountain.

“Yeah and so are Willy and Mitch who I’m sure you’re very excited to see.” Louis leaned forward with a teasing expression on his face. Brody looked away, hoping to come up with a good comeback but none came to mind. That seemed to make the others develop teasing smiles of their own.

“You’re not denying it?” Aasim looked up from his book.

“Well, I-” Brody paused her sentence when she noticed someone running forward. “There’s Prisha!” She pointed over Violet’s shoulder. The group looked over where she was pointing, all of their smiles growing when they saw her. 

“Hey, Prisha!” Louis gave a friendly wave. “Excited for some roller skating?” 

“I can’t wait,” Prisha walked over, stopping beside Violet. 

“Have you ever been?” Brody asked, hoping to distract the others from their last topic.

“No, but I’m sure it will be fun,” Prisha's casual tone tried to divert the attention away from her hand which gently grabbed Violet's, intertwining their fingers. 

Louis’ eyes looked like they were three times their normal size. Jumping to his feet, he pointed excitedly towards Violet and Prisha’s hands. “I knew it! You’re together! Violet has been _unusually_ happy recently.”

Violet wanted to ask why it was unusual but she knew it was a stupid question to ask. She had never been happy like this.

“I can’t believe it!” Brody also rose to her feet, joining Louis who was grinning like he had predicted the greatest mystery. Brody’s eyes danced with happiness for her two friends. 

Clementine gave a warm smile. “I’m really happy for you two. Looks like we have another thing to celebrate today.”

“I’m glad too,” Aasim placed his book to the side. “It was clear from the last few weeks that something was going on with the two of you. I hope nothing but the best for you.” The genuine tone in his voice was felt through each word he had spoken.

Prisha and Violet suddenly become shy and awkward, each of them trying to deal with their friends’ joyful congratulations. The two of them looked at each other with overjoyed expressions. 

“Well, I think we need to get to our party destination!” Louis spun around, his coat dramatically flowing for a brief moment in the wind. “We have a lot to celebrate.” 

On that note the group made their way to his car, everyone chatting and laughing. It was a bit of a longer car ride over there but no one seemed to mind. The group talked excitedly about different topics as the music blasted through Louis’ car. When they arrived at Prescott’s Dancing Disco Roller Skating Rink they immediately recognized the others who were waiting outside for them. 

Willy jumped up and down excitedly, scampering over to the group. “You’re here! I can’t wait to get inside and show you all my cool moves!” He pumped his fists energetically when he paused and noticed someone he hadn’t met before. “I’m Willy!” He shot out his hand, waiting for Prisha to return the gesture. 

“Prisha,” She shook his hand, a warm smile on her face. She seemed to already be getting along with Willy which didn’t seem to shock the others. It just seemed to be the natural reaction with the kid. Mitch slowly made his way forward, standing by his brother. 

“Hey, Brody,” he gave a small smile towards her.

“Hey. Mitch,” Brody walked forward. “I should probably introduce you to the others. “Mitch, these are my friends Aasim, Violet, Clem, Louis and Prisha. Guys, this is Mitch.”

Mitch gave a short nod. “Nice to meet you.”

“Yeah, it’s nice to meet you too.” Louis gave a playful smile over to Brody who looked annoyed at it. 

“Hey, we should probably head in.” Marlon called over from the front door.

“Okay,” Louis ran forward along with the rest of the group. “I don’t think many of you have met my best friend Marlon, but he’s the coolest guy you’ll ever know!” Louis swung an arm around his friend's neck. Marlon gave a small chuckle at his friend’s introduction.

“I’m just a normal guy. I think I’ve met you two before,” He looked over at the group. “Violet and Clem, right?”

“That’s right.” Clementine replied while Violet nodded in acknowledgement. 

“It’s nice to spend some more time with Louis’ girlfriend and friends.”

With that the group entered the building and were immediately greeted by a bored employee.

“If you want to skate, come over here,” The person gave a tired sigh when the group made their way over. 

“How many in your group?”

“Nine,” Louis flashed a friendly smile that was quickly dismissed by the employee who continued their questions. After everyone had gotten on their roller skates they all entered the rink which held a disco ball over it. Its bright, shining reflection danced on the floor as classic disco songs played. Willy was the first one on the rink, shooting across the floor in a matter of seconds. One by one everyone got onto the rink, splitting off into different pairs. Willy excitedly skated around Aasim and Marlon who seemed to be in the middle of a conversation. 

“So how long have you known Louis?” Marlon looked over at Aasim when he heard his question. 

“Over ten years now. We met all the way back in 5th grade. We didn't go to the same school, but one day we happened to be at the same park and one thing led to another and by the end of the day we were best friends. Ever since that day we've been inseparable.” Marlon’s smile grew when he recalled the memory. “I’m lucky to have a best friend like him. Lou can be a bit much at times-” Marlon was cut off when his and Aasim’s attention was drawn over to Louis’ declaration. 

“Watch and learn!” He skated out to the middle of the rink and gave a demonstration of his skills, spinning round in tight circles, a feat at which Violet rolled her eyes.

“...But when it comes down to it, he’s the best friend I could ever ask for.”

Aasim seemed genuinely impressed by their friendship as he listened to Marlon. “I agree that he is a lot, but while I’ve only known him for a little while I can agree that he is a good friend.” Aasim’s words cause Marlon’s smile to grow. Before the two could continue their conversation, Willy slid by them. 

“Guys! Guys! Can we play a game? Please!” Willy’s pleading voice caused them to look over.

“What game?” Aasim asked.

“Tag! If I catch one of the two of you, you’re it.” 

The two older boys looked at each other; each of them seemed to be for the idea.

“Alright, it’s on.” Marlon gave a competitive smile which made Willy's face beam with excitement. Aasim and Marlon took off like a shot, leaving Willy in the dust.

“Hey, no fair! I didn’t say go!” Willy shouted, giving chase to the other two who laughed as they continued to skate.

Violet tried her best to keep her balance on the rink but every single time that she tried to skate she fell. Cursing internally as she rose, she tried again. A wave of embarrassment washed over her as she fell on her butt once more. She couldn’t believe how terrible she was at skating. _Great way to impress your new girlfriend, Violet._

Violet could feel her annoyance rise with each time she fell. Prisha skated over, stopping in front of her and holding out her hand. Violet accepted it, swaying back and forth as she tried to regain her balance. “Thanks,” Violet mumbled.

“Here,” Prisha took both of her hands and slowly started to skate, backwards pulling Violet along with her. A gentle smile played on her girlfriend’s lips when Violet looked forward. Whenever she looked at Prisha she couldn’t help but smile. Now that she wasn’t falling every five seconds, disco roller skating was actually fun. Especially since she was holding hands with Prisha. The two continued to skate together, each of them seeming to only be focused on each other. Enjoying each other’s company as the lights flashed across the floor.

“Violet and Prisha seem to be having a good time,” Clementine noted as she skated forward alongside Louis. Their fingers intertwined as their feet rhythmically moved across the floor.

“Yeah, I know I was boasting about my great matchmaking skills, but I’m sort of shocked that I called it.” Louis replied, his hand gently swaying back and forth with Clementine’s.

“They seem like a good match.”

“They really do,” Louis looked over his girlfriend who seemed a bit fried. 

“Are you doing okay, Clem?” Louis looked over with concern.

Clementine seemed shocked by the question but felt touched that Louis had shown concern.“Yeah, I’m fine. It's just the last malum. It was a lot.” Clementine kept her voice low so that only the two of them could hear. 

“Yeah, it was terrifying, but each step of the way we’re learning more so we’ll be even better prepared next time.” Louis’ words did seem to comfort Clementine.

“I guess. I’m not sure. We could’ve lost Violet,” The two looked over at their friend who was laughing as Prisha spun the two of them around. To think that just a few days ago she could’ve died filled Clementine with a strong, uneasy feeling. “I just hope our luck doesn’t run out.” 

Clementine felt her arm being pulled as Louis had stopped in his tracks.

“Clem, you’re a great leader and we’re all here for you. Each of us are here to help you. You’re not alone.” 

Clementine looked away at his words. She knew that she was putting too much on her shoulders. Every single member of her team was ready and willing to help her. She just needed to accept more of their help. Leaning forward, she placed a quick kiss on Louis’ cheek. “Thanks, Louis,” 

Louis’s face lit up when he received the kiss. “Anyway, this day is supposed to be one of celebration. So let’s celebrate!” Louis skated forward, pulling Clementine along as they danced around the rink.

“Do you need a break?” Mitch looked over at Brody who seemed to be enjoying herself. She didn’t know exactly what she had expected when she heard the term disco roller skating, but it had turned out to be pretty fun. Mitch and her had just enjoyed talking as they casually went around the rink. 

“I could use a break. What about you?” She looked over at Mitch who nodded.

“Yeah I could use some food, I think I saw a snack shop over there,” He motioned to the other side of the rink.

“Alright, then let’s go,” Brody moved forward with Mitch closely following behind her. Mitch was the first to arrive at the exit of the rink. Opening the small door, he moved aside to let Brody go first. Brody gave an appreciative smile before exiting. Soon the two of them had made their way to a table and Mitch had gotten a few different snacks for them. 

“So how’s chemistry going?” Mitch asked, taking a sip from his cup.

“It’s going so much better now. I think with your help I won’t only pass but actually get a good grade in the class.” Brody’s expression caused Mitch to smile.

“Glad I can help. It is always the worst when you take a class and it doesn’t make sense at all. I remember this really shitty teacher I had and it really made the class a pain in the ass.” Mitch replied, pausing when he looked over at Brody who seemed to   
be struck with a moment of realization.

“Brody?”

“Oh sorry, I just remembered something,” She turned her attention to her pockets, rummaging through them before producing what looked like two friendship bracelets. “So I know you said you didn’t need to be paid to help me, but I needed some way to show that I really appreciate it.” She held forward a friendship bracelet. Three colors intertwined together to create it: a bright yellow, a bold orange and black. “I also want to say thanks for being my friend.” Her voice was quiet and nervous as she held forth the gift. 

Mitch looked shocked by her present. A moment of silence passed between them before he reached out and took one of the friendship bracelets. He silently placed it on his right wrist. An excited smile took over his face when he looked back at her.

“Holy shit! This is awesome! Thanks, Brody,”

“It’s okay? I wasn’t sure what colors you’d like.”

“It’s perfect, the colors of an explosion! It’s the fucking coolest friendship bracelet I’ve ever seen.”

Brody’s eyes lit up at those words. Quickly she placed her own bracelet on her left wrist. Holding up their friendship bracelets, the two tapped them together before laughing. 

After a few minutes the pair had finished up their snacks and rolled back onto the rink. 

“Hey, Brody?”

“Yeah?”

Mitch was watching the floor, clearly feeling awkward about his next words. “Thanks for being my friend too.” Mitch’s words made Brody’s heart swell with happiness. Their attention was drawn away from each other when Willy slid towards them.

“Mitch, Brody, you wanna play tag with us?”

The two looked at each other, sharing a smile.

“Sure, buddy.” With their confirmation, Willy grabbed each of their hands, pulling them towards Aasim and Marlon who were waiting for them. 

“Hold on a minute!” Willy yelled, skating towards the others. After a few minutes everyone was in a circle. The group had all agreed to end their time together by playing a few rounds of tag. As the matches started it was clear that some were definitely better than others. Everyone’s laughter filled the rink as they watched Willy desperately try to catch Prisha who seemed to dodge his attempts with ease before he turned his attention towards Louis who wasn’t prepared and got tagged easily. Time seemed to fly by as they continued to play until they realized how late it had become. Everyone said their goodbyes and walked away happy. It had been another great party.


	27. An Unsteady Battle

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Clementine and her team jump into a rift that poses a challenge.

Violet felt calm as she walked with Prisha. The soft breeze of the day blew her hair gently as the pair walked together towards the cafeteria. As they made their way down a walkway, Prisha’s hand slowly made its way over to Violet’s, her pinky intertwining with Violet’s. Violet looked over and noticed the warm expression on Prisha's face, one that she couldn’t help but mirror when she saw it. Suddenly she felt her phone buzzing against her thigh. Using her free hand, she shuffled her hand around her pocket before getting her phone. When she saw the text message on her phone her face dropped for a moment. Another rift had opened up.

“What’s wrong?” Violet looked over at Prisha who had a concerned look on her face.

“Nothing’s wrong. It’s just I got a text about a group project for class and this is the only time we can meet. So I have to go.” Violet felt her heart sting from the lie she had just told. 

“That’s okay.” Prisha gave an understanding smile before leaning forward and placing a kiss on Violet’s cheek. In that moment Violet felt like a jolt of electricity had run straight through her heart. Prisha seemed a bit nervous about her romantic gesture but her face quickly softened when she saw the expression on Violet’s face. 

“I’ll text you when I’m done,” Violet replied, giving a small wave before running off. The soft expression on her face soon hardened, focusing back on the reason she had been called away. It only took her a few minutes to reach the front gates of Ericson University where the others waited. 

“I came here as quick as I could.” Violet said, trying to catch her breath.

“Don’t worry about it Vi, I had to get the weapons anyway.” Louis replied, swinging his sign against his shoulder casually.

“Today’s rift is a bit different,” Clementine’s words drew the team’s attention to her. “On the back side of the map it shows the surrounding area around campus. When I looked there today I noticed the rift, so this will be different.”

“But nothing we can’t handle,” Louis commented, placing his sign down.

“As long as we’re careful.” Aasim added.

“Always.” Louis glanced over at his girlfriend who seemed a bit on edge today. 

“Then let’s head out,” Clementine ended the conversation with that and the team started their journey to the rift. “It’s only a few blocks away.”

Aasim and Clementine led the front of the group, each of them drawn into the conversation they were having while Brody held the middle and Louis and Violet brought up the rear. Louis walked alongside his friend and was soon aware that she also seemed a bit off today. He had a pretty good guess why.

“It must be hard,” Louis started, causing Violet to glance over, “Lying to Prisha.”

Violet’s expression hardened for a second before it changed to a sadder one. “Yeah, but there’s nothing I can do about it. If it protects her, then it’s worth it.” Violet’s tone seemed to make it seem like it wasn’t affecting her but her body language said otherwise.

“Well who knows, maybe one day she’ll join the team,” Louis spoke with a hopeful ring to his words, but realized his mistake a moment too late. Violet’s face fell, looking away from him.

“It’s not that simple. Being a persona user isn’t risk free and after what happened with Sarah...” Violet’s words faded near the end. “I don’t want to risk it happening to her. This is the only way I can be with her and still be on the team.”

Louis remained quiet at her words. She wasn’t wrong considering what had happened to Sarah. Louis wasn’t sure if he would have ever told Clementine the truth about personas if she wasn’t already a persona user. “I understand. Just know that I have your back,” He nudged Violet’s shoulder playfully to which she looked over with an annoyed expression. A small smile appeared on her face after a minute though.

“We all have your back,” Brody called out, turning her head over her shoulder towards them. “I can’t imagine what it’s like having someone you care about and being stuck in your position, Violet, but I think you’re making the best of it.”

Louis gave a teasing smile over at Brody. “I don't know, Brody, isn’t there someone you care about?” He motioned with his eyes towards her friendship bracelet, his eyebrows wiggling playfully. Brody’s face had a light blush on it.

“Even if I do care about him, we’re just friends. That’s why I gave him the friendship bracelet.”

Louis strolled up to the left of Brody, walking beside her with a playful smile on his face. “If that's what you give friends, then why haven’t I gotten one?” It was clear what Louis wanted Brody to admit, but she wasn’t going to feed his mischievous side. 

“He does have a point.” Violet’s voice appeared on Brody's right; a small smile played on her lips. Brody couldn’t believe that she was joining in as well.

“If you want a friendship bracelet, all you have to do is ask,” Brody’s statement caused Louis to pause in his teasing. An excited joy filled his eyes.

“Louis? You’re done?” Violet leaned forward, looking at her friend.

“No! Well it’s just... would you really make me a friendship bracelet?” The excitement in his eyes took over his whole face as he looked at Brody.

“Sure!” Brody replied with a warm smile.

“I guess everyone has their price,” Violet smirked.

“Hey, don’t tell me you wouldn’t want a friendship bracelet.” Louis’ voice took a defensive tone.

“Well, sure, but...” Violet paused when she saw the expression on her friends’ faces. “This is stupid.”

“Guys, we’re here.” Aasim called them forward. The team all gathered around the rift, a nervous feeling washing over them as they stared at it. Even though they had been successful in the past it didn’t seem to lessen the nerves that a rift awoke in them. 

Clementine looked around at her team; she didn’t need to ask if they were ready. It was clear from their faces that they were. As they stepped forward the rift tore open, swallowing the team whole. Everyone was surprised when they entered this sanctum. The room was pitch black except for two small signs on the two walls. One read: _Eat, Sleep, Work._ However, the first two words barely had any light to them. The words faded from existence every few seconds before reappearing. On the other side was a sign that read: _Timeline to Promotion._ Scrawled all over it was a very detailed timeline involving how many hours of work the person needed to input, their meals which were forced into the schedule and the sleep which seemed to have an almost nonexistent place on the timeline. Far off in the distance was what looked to be some sort of light, but it wasn’t clear. From the very limited visual cues they could intake it seemed to be some sort of tunnel.

“Hello?” a tired voice called out. “Is anyone there?”

Clementine blindly made her way forward, bumping into who she assumed had spoken. “Sorry,” She looked at him and noticed that he looked to be stuck in place. “I’m Clementine, what’s your name?”

“Gary Parker.” Based on his voice and silhouette Clementine figured he was older than them, perhaps in his thirties. 

The others had slowly made their way through the darkness and taken their places beside their leader. Suddenly the shuffling of feet echoed through the tunnel. A small, tiny voice whispered, frightened and uneasy.

“Gabu?”

“Gabu?” Louis’ face lit up. “We’re over here, buddy!”

The quickened pacing of his feet showed that he had understood, but then almost immediately he stopped. A unnerving cry rang out from the two signs as words and dates transformed into shadows that slithered into the safety of darkness within seconds. Gabu’s frantic feet could be heard as it disappeared in the distance. Clementine felt her heart race, the anxiety of the situation starting to build within her. The feeling of stress that had been radiating from within this sanctum wasn’t making it any easier for her. Her mind spun as she tried to format a good plan for a situation they had never found themselves in.

“Louis, Aasim, take the right side but be careful. Violet and I will take the left side. Brody, you stay with Gary.” Clementine’s instructions were followed without hesitation. Louis and Aasim ran forward, disappearing into the darkness while Clementine and Violet went the opposite way. It was only a matter of seconds before she heard Aasim’s voice.

“Persona!” A small light was emitted from the sigil when he had summoned it, but after that he was lost in the darkness again. A bolt of fire shot out, revealing a shadow that was crawling towards Aasim as the attack missed its target, instead hitting the brick wall. Clementine had never thought that they would have to fight in the darkness one of these days. _Why didn’t I think of this?_

Violet stood beside her; the meat cleaver was out and ready to slice anything that came their way. She needed to focus on clearing her side of the sanctum. Placing her sword in front of her and taking a deep breath, she was prepared.

“Persona!” Louis’ shaky voice rang throughout the tunnel, a crash of thunder landing directly where Aasim once stood. A bright flash of light shone there followed by a painful cry which was heard as a body fell to the floor. “Aasim! Shit, I’m so sorry! I thought-” Louis’ panicked voice echoed through the area.   
A  
asim didn’t respond as he clutched his leg, trying to hold back his pain.

A small light was emitted near Brody whose calming healing magic mended her teammate’s injured leg. 

“Pay attention!” Violet yelled, embedding her weapon into a shadow that was near Clementine. 

“Right, sorry.” Clementine swung her bastard sword against the shadow, making it dissipate before them. The two were about to cut into the next shadow when another pained cry shot out from across the room. Violet and Clementine shared a look. 

Without a second thought, Violet blindly ran to the other side to help. “Persona!” Her voice wavered slightly when she summoned La Guillotine. She knew it was risky, but she needed to help her friends. She would just have to hope that her other senses were strong enough to carry her to victory. Violet stopped when she arrived next to Brody whose entire back had huge claw marks all over it. Violet’s limited sight caught the culprit that had done this and with a quick command the foe was defeated.   
Brody gave an appreciative smile as she crouched over.

“I’m fine, go help the others. I think that-” Brody’s sentence was cut off when another fire attack burned brightly across the room. The image of Aasim warding off three shadows while protecting an injured Louis appeared. 

“Fuck,” Violet mumbled, sprinting off in their direction. 

\-----

Clementine felt her heart pound as she heard her different team members struggle against the hidden shadows. An overwhelming fear started to boil inside of her. What if they lost someone? What if she lost everyone? Shaking her head, she recentered herself. Violet was their only purely physical fighter, but it seemed to be working to her advantage. Even with the risk because of her close combat abilities she was able to find their opponents. 

“Persona!” Clementine slammed her hand against her heart. Ma’at appeared behind her. She would have to use her wildcard ability. Maybe that would tip the scales in their favor. Placing her hand over her heart once more, she commanded Ma’at to freeze. Putting her sword and scale together, Ma’at disappeared and another persona appeared. “Mothman!” Clementine cried out.

A large blue creature appeared behind her. Its large wings laid at its sides, covered with black and yellow and white. Its red eyes glowed in the darkness. Following a simple command, it flew forward, attacking the shadow that was hidden in the darkness with deadly precision. It was by luck that Clementine had chosen a persona who had night vision, but she would use it to her full advantage. Sprinting forward, she instructed Mothman to attack any shadows nearby while she took out any that slipped past. Soon her side of the room was clear. Turning her attention back to the other side, it seemed like her teammates were successful too. The team stood around in a defensive position waiting for any sounds that may suggest more shadows. But they never came. Relieved, the team rejoined at the center of the room where Gary stood shaken but not frozen. 

“Thank you.” he whispered as he turned into a bright ball of light and disappeared. The sanctum soon melted away revealing the street they were once on. Everyone let out shaky breaths before smiling at one another. They had made it through another sanctum. No one died. 

“Good work,” Clementine praised her team, pausing when she saw their expressions. “What?”

“Are you doing okay, Clem?” Aasim walked forward. It took her only a moment to realize that her face must have been carrying all her emotions.

“Yeah, you look exhausted,” Brody added, a concerned expression on her face. 

“I’m fine, just a bit shaken from the sanctum,” Her words didn’t seem to convince her team. Louis placed a hand on her shoulder.

“We made it.” His smile caused Clementine to relax even if it was only a bit. With that the team started to walk back to Ericson. Violet seemed laser focused on her phone, sending a text which was replied to almost immediately. A happy smile appeared on her lips.

“Oh?” Louis’ teasing tone made her look at him. “I only know of one person who makes you smile like that.”

“Shut up.” Violet mumbled, walking ahead of him to join the others.

Brody let out a sad groan. She reached for the back of her black shirt as it flowed in the wind. The back had almost completely been torn to shreds, leaving behind a mangled bloody mess. “This was one of my favorite shirts,” 

The others looked back at their friend with sympathetic smiles. 

“I don’t even know how I’m going to be able to get back to my dorm looking like this.”

Clementine took off her jacket, tossing it towards Brody.

“You can wear my jacket and I’ll walk with you to your dorm to make sure no one notices.”

“Thanks.” 

Clementine gave a small nod before continuing forward. Within a few minutes they were back on campus and each of them were going their separate ways. 

“I’ll text you later,” Louis placed a quick kiss on Clementine’s cheek before walking off. Violet was the next to go, saying how she had someone she needed to see while Aasim talked about changing his now ruined pants which had a very charred-looking pant leg. Clementine and Brody walked toward the dorm building, going up a floor before appearing in front of Brody’s room. Opening the door quietly, Brody peeked around to see if Ruby was there. When the coast was clear she took off the jacket, giving   
it back to Clementine. 

“Thanks again.”

“Anytime,” With that Clementine made her way back off campus towards the comfort of her bed. 

\-----

Brody stretched her arms, leaning back in her desk chair. Now that she had Mitch’s help, chemistry didn’t seem so hard. It was thanks to his teaching skills that she was able to get through her assignments now and not have to be overwhelmed by her anxiety. But now another class seemed to take that place in her mind. She had been so focused on making sure she passed chemistry that she hadn’t realized that she also needed help with statistics. _I should probably get a tutor. Maybe the group knows of one._  
Taking out her phone, she opened up the Team Fun server to the #basic channel where she scrolled past a discussion she was sure was started by Louis asking if each of them could have any song play when they entered a room what would it be.

Bro: _i know this is random  
But do you guys know any good math tutors_

Sing-us-a-song: _no  
Sorry_

Aasim: _What type of math?_

Bro: _statistics_

PrishaFacie: _I’ll check around and get back to you._

Bro: _thanks_

Sing-us-a-song: _vi  
Aren’t you also in that class_

Knife2MeetU: _yeah  
But i suck at math_

Aasim: _I remember statistics._

Sing-us-a-song: _i hate meth  
*math_

Aasim: _If you want I can tutor you._

Sing-us-a-song: _i also hate meth_

Bro: _really???  
Thank you   
!   
I’ll pay you._

Brody placed her phone down, a sense of relief washing over her. She really was grateful for her friends. 

\------

A few days had passed since then and Aasim had set up a time that he could tutor her. Sitting at her desk, Brody nervously waited for him. She always got nervous when she was meeting with a new tutor even if that tutor was her friend. Just when her heart rate had settled her dorm room door swung open, causing her to jump. 

“Oh Sug, I’m sorry! I didn’t mean to scare you,” Ruby peeked her head out from a tall pile of books in her arms. 

“No, it’s fine,” Brody turned back to double check and make sure she had everything. 

“Today’s when your math tutor is showing up, right?” Ruby asked as she placed the books down on her own desk.

“Yeah, he’ll be here in an hour.”

“You don’t mind if I'm studying here when you’re being tutored?”

“Not at all.” Brody gave her roommate a warm smile which Ruby quickly returned. Ruby looked at the Ericson University shirt that Brody was wearing.

“Hey, where's your black shirt with that cute design in the front? I know it’s one of your favorites, but you haven’t been wearing it lately.”

Brody’s face fell. “Oh, yeah. It got damaged and I couldn’t fix it. So I had to toss it.” Brody unconsciously reached to her back where the claws had scratched her. _Too bad my magic can’t fix clothes._

“Oh, well that’s a shame,” Ruby sat on her bed. “Tell you what, how about we go shopping this weekend?”

Brody’s eyes lit up at her friend’s suggestion. “That sounds great.” With that promise of a fun weekend outing, the two of them turned back to different things. Brody opened up Discord in hopes of finding a funny conversation that she had missed when she noticed that she had been mentioned in one of the Persona Pals server’s channels. Moving over to that server, she noticed a new channel that she hadn’t seen before: #appreciation. Pressing it, she realized that this chat was where she had been summoned. 

Sing-us-song: _So i added a few new chat rooms  
And thought this would be a good one to add  
To show each team member that we appreciate them  
So I’m gonna started with @Bro  
It’s Brody appreciation hour!!!  
Without her healing I don’t know what we’d do  
Probably die lol  
So here’s to Brody and OPhelia!   
The best healer ever!  
Brody!  
Brody!_

Brody had noticed that no one had responded for a few hours due to their classes. The smile on her face grew when she saw that everyone had eventually replied.

OrangeuGlad: _Brody!  
Brody!_

Knife2MeetU: _Brody  
Brody_

Aasim: _Thank you for everything Brody._

Knife2MeetU: _You’ve saved our asses countless times_

OrangeuGlad: _thank you so much Brody, the team wouldn’t be the same without you. <3 _

Brody felt tears begin to well up as her throat stung. She really did love all of her friends. 

The hour passed by surprisingly quick thanks to all the different chats on Discord. So much so that Brody didn’t realize it was time until she heard a knock on her door. Rising up, she walked over to the door and opened it. Aasim stood there with different books and study equipment. An old backpack was slung over his shoulder.“Hey, Brody, are you ready?”

“Hey Aasim, yeah, just head over there,” She motioned towards her desk. Aasim gave a nod before walking forward only to pause when he noticed Ruby. 

“Hi there, I’m Ruby,” She got up, holding out her hand.

“Aasim,” He barely managed to get the name out because of his overwhelming emotions. When he reached forward to shake her hand his calculator fell to the floor, clattering on impact. “Oh, sorry.” Aasim bent down to get it but Ruby had already gotten it. 

“Here you go,” Ruby’s warm smile made Aasim heart race, which only quickened when their hands brushed against each other when he took back the calculator.

“Well, I’ll let you get back to tutoring,” Ruby replied, turning her attention back to her books which from a glance seemed to be for some nursing class. 

Brody walked over beside him. “Are you okay, Aasim?”

“Yeah, I’m fine. Let’s get started,” he placed down his books and backpack before taking a seat beside Brody, hoping that she hadn’t picked up on the fact that he thought her roommate was beautiful. “Now statistics is a very different type of math from others. Some say it’s easier for them to handle while others say it’s harder. I’m guessing for you it’s the latter?”

Brody let out a sad sigh. “I’ve never been the brightest when it comes to math. I was hoping going into psychology I could just focus on helping people and not have to deal with math again. But here we are.” She gestured to her different statistics assignments that didn’t have the highest of grades. 

“Well, I say we should start with an old assignment to see where your strengths and weaknesses are. Then we can move to a current assignment.” Aasim’s attention was drawn away for a moment when he saw Ruby who seemed to be focused on her assignment. A strand of hair fell out of her bun when she leaned forward to answer a question.

“Aasim?” Brody’s voice snapped him back into reality.

“Sorry, as I was saying….”

Brody glanced over at him then at Ruby. So she had been right. He was looking at Ruby. 

Thanks to Aasim’s easy and patient tutoring Brody was able to get through her most recent assignment with high hopes that she would get a better grade on it. 

As Aasim got up to grab his backpack it fell over, tossing out a few old pieces of candy corn. Kneeling down he swept them up and placed them back in his bag even though he knew he’d just throw them out later.

“You like candy corn?” 

Aasim looked up to see Ruby standing there. “Yeah,” he awkwardly rubbed the back of his head. 

“I do too!” She smiled brightly which seemed to shock Aasim. No one ever liked candy corn. 

“It’s one of the few things Brody and I disagree on.”

Brody gave a smile back at her roommate before returning to placing away her books. 

“Well, I think it’s highly underrated.” Aasim stated firmly.

“I agree.”

Aasim felt his nervousness building. Glancing down at his watch, his eyes widened. He was going to be late. “Sorry, I have to go. I’ve got class. I’ll see you next time for tutoring, Brody.”

“See you then.”

“It was nice meeting you.” He gave a small smile towards Ruby.

“It was nice to meet you too!” 

With that he slipped out of the room, rushing down the hall to hopefully make it in time for his class. A warm feeling danced in his stomach though. He didn’t think he had ever met someone as pretty as Ruby.


	28. A Moment’s Reprieve

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The team gets a break from rifts and enjoys the normalcy of their lives.

Clementine felt her body ache as she lifted it up, propping it up against her bed frame. She hadn’t gotten the best night’s sleep. Her shoulders felt stiff and tight. The stress of her life was finally catching up to her body. Swinging her legs, she made her way over to her desk. The map laid there ready for her to do her daily morning check to make sure no rifts had appeared. She took a minute, blinking the sleep out of her eyes before returning the focus back on the map. Her eyes scanned the first side carefully then proceeded to the back of it. Clementine felt her body relax a bit. She let out a sigh of relief when she saw that there was nothing there. She really hoped it would stay that way to give herself and her team some much needed down time to focus back on their studies and have fun. 

Snatching up the map, she folded it up and placed it in her backpack. After that she went over to her dresser and got changed before grabbing a quick breakfast and heading out to meet up with her friends to walk to class. Her shoulders ached while she ran but it was soon out of her thoughts when she saw her group of friends at the fountain. Louis’ face immediately brightened up when he saw her, giving a friendly wave while she made her way towards them. 

“Alright, now that Clem’s here let’s head out.” Louis exclaimed, placing his hand in Clementine’s as the two of them led the group on their way to class. Brody and Aasim were right behind them followed by Prisha and Violet who happily brought up the rear, enjoying each other’s company. 

“So,” Brody started off the conversation,“Have any of your classes been getting really busy lately?”

“Yeah, they just keep on adding more and more assignments,” Violet grumbled, her face turning into a slight frown.

“Well, it makes sense. We only have a few more weeks before winter break,” Aasim commented, kicking a pebble out of his way.

“Still it is a lot.” Prisha added, looking around at her friends who all seemed pretty tired. 

“We should all study together for exam week,” Clementine looked back at them. “If we all work together I think it will make the process easier and less boring.”

“I second that!” Louis’ excited expression caused Clementine’s heart to quicken. 

“I think that’s a great idea, Clem.” Brody replied, pausing when she realized where they were. “Oh, this is my building.”

“Mine too.” Aasim added, stepping out of the group with Brody. The two of them waved goodbye while they entered the building. The remaining four continued on their way, all walking side by side now.

Louis looked over at Prisha and Violet with a huge grin on his face. “Y’know what we should do?” He waited a minute for a response but everyone seemed to be waiting for him to finish. “We should do a double date!”

Prisha's face lit up at those words while Violet’s face turned away, shocked by the suggestion and overwhelmed by her feelings. 

“I think that would be a lot of fun, right Violet?” Prisha looked over at her girlfriend who nodded in agreement, a small smile playing on her lips. 

“But we should probably wait till after exam week,” Clementine stated.

“Alright! Then it’s settled. After we kick ass at exam week, we'll do a double date.” Louis gave a victorious smile. Suddenly the group had to part ways for some fellow students to get by. Clementine hopped up to the elevated part of the walkway lifting her and Louis’ hands when a trash can blocked their path so she hopped down. The four joined back up, the excitement of the double date still in the air. 

“Oh, this is my stop,” Prisha replied, her face falling. She had hoped they could talk more about the date. 

“See you after class,” Violet gave Prisha’s hand a light squeeze. Prisha smiled back at her, returning the gesture before leaving for her class. Then all that remained was the trio who talked about another topic while they made their way to their respective classes. 

\-----

Brody felt her body shake as she held in a yawn. She had a lot of work to catch up on, but maybe a quick stop in Discord would be just the right thing for her to take a break. She opened up Team Fun’s server and entered the #basic channel, her eyes widening when she read the discussion going on. 

Aasim: _So, that’s when I explained why I think that history is crucial to one’s study and my classmate actually agreed._

PrishaFacie: _That’s great, Aasim._

Sing-us-a-song: _I’m a huge fan_

Aasim: _Of history?_

Sing-us-a-song: _Moob  
No  
Not history  
Moob_

PrishaFacie: _What are you talking about?_

Aasim: _I didn’t know you liked moobs._

Sing-us-a-song: _What!?!  
No  
Brody and Mitch_

Aasim: _But you said moob._

Sing-us-a-song: _that’s their ship name I came up with_

PrishaFacie: _You should choose another one.  
Where did you get the other O?_

Bro: _LOUIS  
What do you think you’re doing_

Sing-us-a-song: _oh shit  
Bro wait I can explain_

Bro: _don’t say moob ever again_

Sing-us-a-song: _I just think you two are cut_

Bro: _it’s gross_

Sing-us-a-song: _*cute  
And I’ve been right so far. I’m two for two._

PrishaFacie: _what do you mean?_

Sing-us-a-song: _I guessed that you and Violet would be a thing  
And me and clem  
Although that’s the one I was more worried about_

Knife2MeetU: _Louis_

Sing-us-a-song: _I just wanna be a matchmaker is that so wrong???_

Brody decided to take a break at that point and instead focused on her massive pile of assignments. She started with her psychology paper, discussing one psychology method and whether she thought it was worthwhile while also seeing what studies showed. Three-fourths of it was already completed so it didn’t take her too long to write the rest. Putting it aside, she figured she could power through one more assignment before earning another break. Opening up her chemistry book, Brody noticed a note slipped out that was from Mitch. It simply had all the formulas they had gone over in case she forgot. A smile tugged on the corners of Brody’s lips as she looked at the note. Placing it aside she focused back on the assignment which she managed to get through without trouble. Opening up Discord again, she was met with another interesting discovery.

Sing-us-a-song: _Clem is the best  
She so badass  
And smart_

Aasim: _Take it to the gushing channel, Louis_

PrishaFacie: _THERE”S A GUSHIN CHANNEL!_

Sing-us-a-song: _Fine be that way  
Let’s go Prisha  
Going to the best channel_

Brody’s curiosity nagged at her. She was interested in seeing exactly what the #gushing channel was. Clicking it, she was met with pictures of Clementine and Violet. Prisha and Louis were in the middle of a discussion when she entered. 

Sing-us-a-song: _Clementine is the coolest person ever  
She has a nice smile too   
See _

Sing-us-a-song inserted a photo of Clementine smiling in mid-laugh.

PrishaFacie: _Nothing compares to Violet’s smile._

PrishaFacie inserted a photo of Violet from the disco rollerblading party.

Sing-us-a-song: _Violet’s smile is nice  
Clem has the prettiest eyes tho  
They’re golden brown and amazing_

PrishaFacie: _Clem has nice eyes but not as nice as Violet’s._

Sing-us-a-song: _stop stepping on my Clem praise, Prisha_

PrishaFacie: _No_

Sing-us-a-song: _@Knife2MeetU_

PrishFacie: _Why did you summon Violet!?!_

Sing-us-a-song: _It was an accident!  
I swear_

Knife2MeetU: _Why was I summoned?  
If you guys keep fighting i’ll be forced to make a arguing channel_

Sing-us-a-song: _sorry Vi  
We won't fight no more_

PrishaFacie: _My apologies_

Violet felt her heartbeat racing as she put away her phone. This was the first time she had noticed that they had added a new channel. To think that Prisha wanted to gush about her… the very thought made Violet’s face heat up.

\-----

“Here you go,” Clementine’s words caused Brody to look up from her phone. A warm cup of tea was placed in front of her.

“Thanks,” Brody took a sip before continuing. “So Clem, how are you doing? I can tell you’re stressed.”

Clementine’s eyes widened for a moment. “Yeah, I just think that everything is piling up now that school is almost out for the winter.” Even though she tried to hide it the tiredness still seeped through Clementine’s voice.

“Well, if you ever need any help I’m always here.” Brody’s warm smile made Clementine smile as well.

“Thanks Brody.”

“Don’t mention it,” Brody stopped her sip of tea when she noticed something on her phone.

“What’s up?” Clementine asked, leaning forward 

“Oh, it’s just Discord.”

“That reminds me, I’ve been meaning to check it.” Clementine opened up Discord, setting her back in the #basic channel. 

Sing-us-a-song: _i’m bored_

Knife2MeetU: _don;t care_

Sing-us-a-song: _*gasp*  
Violet I’m so hurt_

OrangeuGlad: _You could join Prisha and Aasim  
I saw them playing scrabble by the caf_

Sing-us-a-song: _I saw them  
There too much for me _

Sing-us-a-song inserted a video clip.

Curious, Clementine clicked on the video, turning her phone so the video covered the whole screen. Brody leaned forward to join in.

It was a bit of a shaky video as if Louis had taken it in secret. From the looks of it he had decided to hide behind a bush. 

“That’s not a word,” Aasim huffed, crossing his arms as he leaned back in his chair. 

“It is and I’ll prove it.” Prisha typed something into her phone, scrolling through some search engine before turning it towards Aasim.

“There: nematoda. It is the scientific name for roundworms. It looks like I win.” A smug smile was on Prisha’s face, proud of her victory. 

Aasim looked shocked for a moment before his expression turned grumpy. “You’re a nematoda.” Aasim mumbled. 

Prisha’s face hardened slightly at his words.“What was that?” 

Aasim glanced over, surprised by Prisha’s face. Standing up, he tossed aside the Scrabble board.

“What was that for?” Prisha rose, looking confused by her friend’s action.

“I panicked.”

Clementine and Brody laughed as the video finished up. After seeing that they understood why Louis hadn’t joined in the game. 

\-----

Aasim felt the sweat start to collect on his back as he snuck over to the dorms. He wasn’t sure why he was doing this. No, that wasn’t true - he knew. He couldn’t stop thinking about Ruby so he had come up with this genius idea. Stopping outside of the building below Ruby and Brody’s dorm room, his eyes searched around for what he was looking for. Kneeling down, he picked up as many pebbles as he could find. _Now or never, Aasim._

He threw the first pebble which hit the side of the building before landing useless by his feet. _That was just a practice throw._ Swinging his arm, he tossed the next pebble which hit against Ruby’s window. He then proceeded to hit it again with another pebble. Then another. His doubts started to crawl back in with each toss. Maybe this wasn’t such a good idea after all. He had failed to hear the window slide open in time to stop his next pebble which hit Ruby’s nose. 

“Ow!”

“Ruby, I’m so sorry!” Aasim whisper shouted with an apologetic look on his face. 

“Aasim? Is that you?” Ruby’s eyes took a moment to adjust before her question was answered. “What are you doing here?”

“I came here because I couldn’t stop thinking about you.” Aasim paused, surprised by his own willingness to share those words. Ruby’s rosy cheeks seemed to grow redder at his words. “Not in a creepy way. I just wanted to share a poem with you from one of the greats.” Clearing his throat, he began the poem. “What guile is this, that those her fiery red tresses she doth attire under a net of gold...”

“Aasim, wait.” Ruby’s voice caused him to pause. 

Aasim’s face fell when he realized what she must mean by that. “You’re right. This is too much. I’m sorry.”

“No, Aasim, wait!” she whispered. “I don’t want you to stop, just keep it down. Brody’s asleep.” Her warm smile towards him made his heart skip a beat. An excited smile played on his lips as he continued. Time seemed to freeze in that moment for the two of them as Aasim’s poetry filled the night air. When he had finished, the two stared at each for a moment. Aasim looked down at his watch and realized how late it was. 

“Sorry to keep you up. I should go.” 

Ruby seemed sad at his words. “Aasim?”

“Yeah?”

“Thank you for the poetry. It was lovely.” With that she closed her window, leaving Aasim wandering back to his dorm, a warm fuzzy feeling swelling up inside him. 

\-----

Louis wanted to help his friends. He could tell that they were stressing out over school and over keeping both their normal lives and hero duties in balance. Kicking his legs lazily on his bed, he stared up at the ceiling waiting, hoping for inspiration to strike. He blew a dreadlock out of his face when it hit him. The perfect way to relax. In a desperate attempt to get his phone out as quickly as possible, he ended up throwing it across the room. Scrambling to his feet, he looked over his phone to make sure it wasn’t broken before entering Discord. 

Sing-us-a-song: _So I’ve noticed lately that everyone has been feeling a bit on edge lately  
From school and such_

Knife2MeetU: _what gave it away?_

Sing-us-a-song: _I’ve come up with a solution  
Everyone meet me at the fountain at 3 _

With that done he ran over to his dresser, throwing off his shirt and putting on a new one that seemed to more fit the vibe he was trying to set. It was a black t-shirt with the words _Education is important, but piano is importanter._ A simple white piano was proudly displayed underneath the words. Checking his phone, he realized that he was going to be late for class. Sprinting outside his dorm with his backpack haphazardly thrown on his back, Louis made his way to Building E. An excited joy filled his chest at the thought of seeing his friends and putting his plan into action. After class he had run into his roommate Marlon and insisted that he join in.

“Are you sure it’s okay? I don’t wanna step on anyone’s toes.” Marlon looked over at his best friend who seemed too eager to take in his words.

“You won’t be stepping on anyone’s toes. Everyone knows you! Besides it’s more fun with you there.”

Marlon’s face brightened at his friend’s words. “Well, if you say so,”

The pair made their way over to the fountain where the rest of the group waited. Louis was shocked to notice another friend he wasn’t expecting to see. Willy sat on the fountain, playfully kicking his legs as he waited.   
“  
Thank you all for coming!” Louis dramatically rose his arms, a huge grin on his face. 

“So what’s your solution?” Aasim asked, looking up from his spot.

“I think we should all play a game together,” Louis paused when Willy let out a cheerful cry. “And what better game than Ninja!”

It was clear from the looks on some of their faces that they had never played before. Louis took a minute or two of explaining the rules: try to hit the other players’ arms with your own. If both your arms are hit you’re out. You can either attack or move for a turn. The group seemed excited, forming a circle as they awaited the beginning of the game. 

“You better watch out, because I’m basically a ninja,” Louis warned teasingly, striking his best ninja pose.

Clementine’s eyes had a playful edge to them when she looked at him with a smile. “Oh, you too? I thought I was the only one.” She displayed her best ninja pose as well. 

The two laughed for a minute before the game officially started. Everyone bowed to each other before they each struck their best ninja pose. Willy was the first to attack, going after Aasim with insane speed. Within seconds Aasim had lost one of his arms. 

“Uh oh, looks like we better watch out for Willy!” Louis exclaimed to which Willy grinned.

Aasim was next, going after Marlon who barely dodged his attack. After a sigh of relief Marlon lunged forward toward Clementine who dodged it before immediately attacking Aasim and making him the first one out. Aasim walked over to the fountain, an annoyed look on his face as he watched the game. Prisha was next. She glanced over at Violet, quickly sharing a look before going after Clementine. Violet attacked next, also going after Clementine. She managed to dodge both of their attacks. Brody swung towards Willy who dodged it with a laugh. Louis was last, swinging towards Prisha in hopes of defending his girlfriend. He missed, leaving himself vulnerable. 

Willy swung forward towards Brody, missing her right arm by an inch. Marlon set out to attack Louis who seemed to take up his friend’s challenge, focusing on his best friend as his main rival. Clementine didn’t hesitate. Swinging her arm against Violet’s, Clementine caused her to lose her right arm. Prisha retaliated, swinging towards Clementine and swiping at her left arm, missing it by mere inches. Violet repositioned herself, giving her a better defensive stance. Brody continued to only focus on Willy in hopes the others would be too distracted to care about her. Louis swung wildly at Marlon, taking out his friend’s left arm. He hoped that if he was fast enough he could take out Marlon and then defend Clementine. Willy attacked again, this time connecting with Brody’s right arm. Marlon shot forward, hitting Louis’ left arm before Clementine stepped forward, taking a risky move and attacking Violet once again. Even with Violet’s reflexes she wasn’t fast enough to dodge it and with one hit she was out. She took her place beside Aasim, giving Prisha a confident smile as they looked at each other. 

Without warning Prisha smacked Clementine’s right arm, making it useless. Brody was up next, her attack paying off when it hit one of Willy’s arms. Louis landed a quick attack on Marlon’s left arm, smiling proudly when he did so. Willy was next. Swinging wildly he connected with Brody’s remaining arm, causing her to join the losers at the fountain. Marlon’s next move got Louis out which made him pout for a moment before flashing a bright smile at Clementine as he sat over at the fountain. 

Clem moved back, giving herself a better chance at surviving the next few attacks. Prisha also took this turn to reposition herself. Willy jumped forward, entering the arena of the remaining four players. Marlon decided to go after Prisha. He lunged forward and missed her left arm, his final arm free to attack. Clementine swung at Prisha who couldn’t move her arm in time, losing it. Putting her left arm behind her back, Prisha hit Marlon’s hand, getting him out. Willy shot his arm out, hitting Clementine’s last arm. With a defeat sighed she sat by her boyfriend.

It was the final showdown now. Willy and Prisha gave each other intimidating stares. Prisha made her move, leaving her arm exposed for an attack but Willy missed. The two danced around each other, both giving their all as they tried to win. Prisha saw an opening with Willy’s last attack and decided to go for it. But she missed, leaving her arm vulnerable to attack. With a quick hit the game was over and Willy had won. Prisha walked forward, shaking Willy’s hand in congratulations for his victory.

“Can we play again?” Willy asked, the excitement practically radiating off his body. Everyone smiled at each other, eager to start the next round.

“I won’t lose this time.” Aasim declared as he decided to strike a serious ninja pose this time.

“My ninja moves won’t miss!” Louis shouted, a large grin spread across his face. The group continued to play Ninja as time flew by until it was time for them to go their separate ways. 

After everyone had left except Clem and Louis, the two sat around for a moment and enjoyed the peace and calm between them. Suddenly Clem stood up which caused her boyfriend to join her. “I have to go,” She leaned forward and placed a soft kiss on Louis’ lips which caused a goofy grin to appear on his face “Thanks, Lou. This was a lot of fun.”

As Clementine left, giving a final wave, Louis stood there happy that his plan had worked out after all. Glad to help his friends get a break that they all deserved.


	29. A Winding Puzzle

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Willy and Violet get stuck in a rift together and have to try and navigate through it alone.

Aasim leaned over, placing his book back into his bag. 

“Thanks, Aasim. I think with your help I’ll be able to pass statistics.” Brody’s voice caused him to look up at her. A warm expression of gratitude covered her face. 

“There’s no need to thank me. You’re a quick learner so you should be proud of the progress you’ve made.” He swung the backpack on his back, stopping when the door opened. Ruby walked into the room, pausing when she saw Aasim. A smile appeared on her face. 

“Hey Ruby, I’m not going to be back till after four, sorry,” Brody apologized, putting away her study materials.

“Aw Sug, don’t worry about it,” Ruby sat down on her bed, leaning her bag beside it. 

“Well, I should get going,” Brody walked past the other two, quickly opening the door before disappearing. The room was quiet for a moment, neither of them saying a word.

“Well, I should go too.” Aasim awkwardly shifted the bag on his shoulders.

“Oh, I could walk with you if you want?” Ruby rose, walking towards Aasim.

“You don’t mind?”

“It’s no trouble at all. Besides, I’m in the mood for some walking.” 

Aasim’s eyes brighten at her words. They had walked together after tutoring had finished before, but now it was starting to become a habit. One that Aasim didn’t mind at all. In fact he had hoped she would offer to join him. Holding open the door for her, Aasim stepped out after Ruby and the pair made their way down the hall. They silently made their way outside. Ruby was the first to break the silence.

“So, Aasim last time you were telling me about how you were a history major,”

Aasim looked over at her excitedly for multiple reasons but one was the fact that she had remembered what he had told her. It also seemed that she genuinely cared about his answer. 

“That’s right. I’ve always been interested in history. Learning about different time periods and how the world came to be as we know it now. I thought that it was always an important subject. Y'know that famous saying “those who fail to study history are doomed to repeat it?” I think it really rings true.” He stopped his monologue, wondering if he was getting too into the topic at hand. “Tell me Ruby, what got you interested in becoming a nurse?” His question seemed to have the same effect on her that Ruby’s question had had on him. Her eyes instantly brightened, a gentle smile on her face as she spoke. 

“Well, I didn’t really know I wanted to go into nursing until I met Ms. Martin. She works here on campus at the health center. But back in high school during my junior year she visited my school to do some demonstrations for first aid and such. When I saw the demonstration I felt as if I was struck by lightning. To think that I could help people like that... Well, the next thing I knew I had decided my major.” Ruby spoke fondly of the memories, a wide smile on her face as she looked over at Aasim.

“It’s great when you have a mentor to look up to.” Aasim commented, slowing down his pace so that the walk could last a bit longer.

“It really is. I came here because of Ms. Martin and since then I’ve felt like she’s just helped me so much. Taught me so many things,” Ruby paused for a moment before asking her question. “What about you, Aasim? Ever had a mentor figure to look up to?” 

“Once, when I was in junior high. Mr. Nelson, my history teacher, was the one who made me truly appreciate history. The way he taught and spoke about the different events and topics was so inspiring. When I entered college I thought I had found another mentor, but...” Aasim stopped in his tracks, remembering Mrs. Weathers and how she had used him. Ruby looked over with concern, causing Aasim to finish his sentence. “It didn’t work out. “

“Aw, well I’m sure you’ll find a good mentor soon.” Ruby placed a hand on his shoulder which caused his heartbeat to quicken. 

“I’m not sure, but thank you.” The two of them looked at each other with smiles when suddenly out of the corner of his eye he noticed an all too familiar face: Louis. He was running towards them, a friendly grin on his face that tried to but didn’t hide the mischievous glint in his eyes. 

“Hey there, Aasim.” He greeted them with a small wave. “Oh, you must be Ruby, Brody’s roommate. She talks about you alot.”

Ruby’s face lit up at those words. A kind, gentle smile played on her lips. “Aww, Brody’s too kind. It’s nice to meet you,” She extended her hand out. Louis excitedly shook it.

“I’m Louis.”

“Ruby. Oh, but I guess you already know that.” Ruby chuckled at her own words.

“Hey, you should totally hang out with us sometime. I’m sure all the others would be happy to meet you and it’s only fair considering that we’ve been hogging Brody.” Louis looked over Aasim who seemed shocked by his suggestion. 

“I’d love to.” 

“Great! Then I’ll contact you later to find out when it works.” Louis’ eyes widened in realization. “Oh wait, I don’t have your number.”

“Oh, here,” Ruby held out her hand and Louis gave her his phone quickly. The two of them exchanged numbers. Louis looked back at his friend and smiled triumphantly. It seemed that Aasim hadn’t gotten her number yet. 

“Well I should get going. It was great meeting you.” Louis called out as he walked away.

“You too!” Ruby replied.

\----

Brody had arrived a little too early at the meet up spot. Looking around, she noticed a nice patch of grass that was covered with shade. Plopping down there she stretched out her legs and looked up at the tree. _I always get too excited about Animal Crossing with Louis._ She couldn’t help it. By now the two had made it a weekly thing. Her attention was pulled away from her thoughts when she heard her friend’s footsteps fast approaching. Louis stood in front of her, huffing as he caught his breath.

“Sorry I’m late - I got caught up in something. You won’t believe what I have to tell you.” Her friend's expression told it all. He had some sort of big news. 

“It’s okay, Louis. I was early. How about I grab us some snacks and drinks?” Brody rose up, brushing off the grass from her pants. 

“Are you going to ‘support local business’?” Louis asked with a teasing expression.

“Of course,” Brody stated simply, surprising Louis. “I’ll be back soon.”

Brody left her friend and made her way across the street to the convenience store. As she opened the door the small bell rang and she was greeted with a familiar voice.

“Hey, Brody,” Mitch said from behind the cash register.

“Hey, Mitch. I’m just here to grab some snacks.” Brody made her way to the usual spot, grabbing up the snacks. 

“Is your chemistry class still going okay?” Mitch asked, making Brody pop her head out from the aisle.

“Yeah, thanks again.”

“Don’t mention it. Tutoring you has just made me realize how much I missed it.” Mitch replied, grabbing the first item to process when Brody walked to the counter. 

“Have you ever thought about going to college?” Brody’s question made Mitch stop what he was doing. His face fell.

“Can’t. Just too fucking expensive.” 

Brody looked sad at his words. “Well, we can always talk about chemistry and stuff if you want. You can even have my book after this semester.”

“Really?” Mitch looked excited at the suggestion. “That would be great.” After a few moments he had processed all the items and she had paid what was due. 

“Thanks Mitch, I should get back. I'm sure Louis is tired of waiting.”

“Oh, that reminds me can you pass on a message to him?” Brody looked surprised by the request but nodded. “Can you tell him that he’s gonna get his ass kicked on Saturday.” Mitch stopped, realizing how it must sound especially after looking at Brody’s expression. “Get his ass kicked at video games. I got this new game and Marlon and Louis are coming over.”

“Oh, that sounds fun. I’ll be sure to pass on the message.” With a quick wave Brody left the store and began to make her way back to the hangout spot where Louis waited. Her thoughts turned in a direction she wasn’t expecting while she was walking. The others had always teased her about her crush for Mitch and how she should go for it. So what if she did? Violet had gone for it. Clem and Louis were together. That meant that maybe she could be with Mitch, right? Her face heated up at the thought. She wondered if she would ever muster up the courage to confess. She looked up to see Louis who had already gotten himself comfortable, his Switch already out. 

“Here you go.” she offered him his share of the treats. 

“Thanks,” He opened the Coke, taking a sip from it. “So how’s Mitch doing?” She didn’t have to look over at his face to know what expression he had on. 

“He’s doing good. He told me to tell you that you’re gonna get your ass kicked on Saturday when you play that game together.” Brody sat down beside him, setting herself up.

“I can’t wait!” Louis got caught up in the news for a second before turning his attention back to Brody. “But I was hoping to hear some other news.”

“Louis, we’re just friends.”

“But you want to be more, dontcha?” He nudged her shoulder playfully, stopping when he saw the expression on her face. “Brody, I know I tease you a bunch but I really do think you two would be good together. I support it all the way.” 

Brody looked over at Louis with an appreciative smile. “So what is it you had to tell me?” 

Louis’ face lit up when he remembered what she was talking about, a mischievous smile overtaking his face. “So, I have a question for you. Does Aasim get distracted when he tutors you? Perhaps because of a certain redhead...”

“I like Mitch.”

“I know that. I was talking about Ruby. Why did you think I was talking about you?”

“Because I have red hair.” Brody gestured to her head.

“Oh, I thought it was auburn.”

“Auburn is another word for redhead.”

“Oh, my bad. Anyway, Aasim totally has a crush on Ruby.”

“I know.” Brody leaned back, turning on her Switch.

“What? What do you mean you know?” Louis looked shocked as he stared at his friend.

“Louis, Aasim tutors me. So of course I would pick up on the fact that he’s crushing on Ruby.”

“Oh right, yeah. That makes sense.” Louis flashed a bright smile “But just watch: I’ll be three for three when they get together. It’s the power of the Lovers arcana.” He gestured proudly to himself. 

Brody smiled at him. “We’ll see.”

“Maybe even four for four.” 

Brody looked over at him with a slight blush on her face. Even though she knew that she had the encouragement from her friends she doubted anything would happen between her and Mitch. Not unless she confessed to him. But even then it was just a small chance. “You wanna visit my island?” Brody asked, moving the conversation away from that topic.

“Yes!” Louis bounced excitedly. “I can’t wait to see all the work you’ve done!”

The two were soon drawn into their games, enjoying the peaceful island life as time went by. 

\-----

Clementine took a deep breath, taking in the smell of freshly cut grass as she laid down looking at the sky with Violet. It was such a peaceful, sunny day, the perfect chance to relax and enjoy her friend’s company. The two looked at the clouds rolling by in silence for a while. Enjoying the rare moment of peace and quiet that this time brought.

“That cloud looks like a knife,” Violet pointed to a small thin cloud that was lazily moving across the sky. It only took a moment for Clementine to find it. It really did look like a knife. Looking around the sky, she saw another cloud in the shape of something else. 

“The cloud over in the far right looks like a bird.” Clementine looked over at Violet whose face was scrunched up in concentration as she tried to see what Clementine had seen. Her face relaxed when she had seen it.

“The knife was cooler.” 

Clementine laughed at Violet’s statement. “I think the bird was better.” 

Violet looked over at her, a small smirk appearing on her face. “Eh, agree to disagree.” Violet’s attention was suddenly drawn away by the sound of the Discord notification. Glancing at her phone, Violet opened up the chat that was happening in #general on Persona Pals.

Sing-us-a-song: _So i just remembered something  
Very important  
Brody promised me a friendship bracelet  
But i’ve waited  
And no bracelet_

Knife2MeetU: _Louis  
Drop it_

Sing-us-a-song: _don’t you want a friendship bracelet too._

Knife2MeetU: _doesn’t matter_

Clementine looked over at Violet as she typed a response. “What's happening?”

“Oh, Louis is just whining about not getting a friendship bracelet from Brody after he teased her about giving one to Mitch.”

“That’s who she gave it to?” Clementine asked, intrigued by the information.

“Yeah, but now Louis is bugging her.” Violet looked back at the chat.

Sing-us-a-song: _matters to me_

Bro: _I will after exams  
For you_

Sing-us-a-song: _I love you bro  
I knew our friendship was _

Bro: _and for anyone else who wants one_

Sing-us-a-song: _special  
Oh i just had genius idea  
What if we made a team friendship bracelet for the persona squad_

Bro: _that sounds really cool!_

Sing-us-a-song: _each person can have a different colored bead then everyone is matching  
How about it Vi?_

Knife2MeetU: _yeah  
Sounds good._

“Louis is talking about matching friendship bracelets for the team.” Violet filled Clementine in on the details.   
Clementine looked over with an excited expression on her face. “That sounds awesome!” She glanced down at her watch. “I need to go. I promised AJ and Lee that I would be home in time for _Disco Broccoli_ reruns.” Jumping up to her feet she brushed off the grass. 

“Alright, I’ll see you later.”

“See you.” Clementine gave a short wave before making her way back home.

Violet turned her attention back to the sky, enjoying the breeze against her skin as she watched the clouds. She still had some time before she had promised to meet with Prisha. Closing her eyes, she basked in the sun as the clouds rolled across the blue sky. When suddenly she heard footsteps running towards her. Looking up, she was surprised to find Willy’s large eyes looking down at her. “Willy? What are you doing here?” Violet groaned, sitting herself upright.

“I saw this freaky looking portal! I think you guys said it was a rift. So we should check it out.” Before Violet could say anything in protest, Willy was off like a shot in the direction of Building O. Violet scrambled up to her feet, internally swearing as she tried to catch up to him. She didn’t want to be pulled into a rift without the rest of the team. Typing frantically on her phone, she messaged the person she figured was important if things did go south. She knew she could count on them to get the message to the others. Turning her attention back to Willy, her eyes widened when she saw him reaching the rift.

“Shit,” She sprinted forward, reaching out to stop him when the rift cracked open and pulled the two of them inside. Willy and Violet fell into the room from the ceiling, landing with a hard groan. 

“Violet! Are you okay?” Willy shuffled his feet over to her, kneeling by her.

“What the fuck were you thinking, Willy!” Violet hissed, grabbing onto her side. This was definitely going to form a bruise. “We never go into a sanctum without the team!”

“I just thought as heroes we should be strong and charge in to save whoever is in here.” Willy looked down at the floor, unwilling to look at Violet. 

“Strong but not stupid! Charging in with just the two of us with no weapons means that there’s a higher chance we could get hurt or worse.” Violet scolded Willy, swaying as she stood up. 

Willy wanted to say something but when he saw Violet’s expression, one mixed with frustration and fear, he decided not to try and argue.

“Sorry,” he mumbled, kicking his foot against the floor. 

“Let’s just focus on getting out,” Violet looked up at where the entrance once was, now just a regular ceiling. The only way to get out was to defeat all the shadows and speak to whoever’s sanctum this was. _Fuck, I hope Brody read my message._ It was dangerous going in without a healer. She really hoped that Brody could make it. A sickening feeling entered Violet’s stomach when a thought came to her. What if she couldn’t enter the sanctum? They had always gone in as a team. Who was to say that once a persona user entered a sanctum that others on the outside could come in later? What if there was no way for the others to help them? Violet shook her head. She couldn’t think like that right now. Her eyes wandered over to Willy who seemed nervous. She had to come up with a plan for the two of them. 

“Follow me,” She motioned to Willy as she leaned up against a wall. Tilting her head forward, she peeked out and noticed a shadow roaming the hallway. “We have to be smart so we’re going to be very careful.” she whispered at Willy who nodded in understanding. Looking at Willy, he didn’t seem like the patient stealth type. Based on how she had been fighting in the sanctums Violet wasn’t used to this technique either. 

“Alright, there’s a shadow. You'll take this one first since we don’t know what your persona is like. If anything goes wrong, I’ll jump in.” 

Willy silently took off his glove and placed it against his heart. “Persona.” His voice shook as he whispered the words, summoning Jack-a-Dandy who swayed back and forth playfully outside his box. Tiptoeing forward, Willy issued an order which his persona followed right away. Jack-a-Dandy’s body fell backwards, a small compartment in the front opening where a red punching glove shot out, hitting the shadow. The shadow let out a stifled cry, crumbling after one hit. 

“Good job,” Violet whispered, crouching beside him. Now that the enemy had been dealt with she took this chance to figure out exactly what this sanctum was like. From a quick scan of the area her heart fell. The two were trapped in a giant maze. The walls stood higher than either of them could hope to climb on top of and arrows pointed in all different directions. Some mentioned what she assumed were different family members while others directed towards beliefs and values. She tilted back her head, letting out a sad sigh. There was no way she would make it in time to meet up with her girlfriend. She was going to have to lie to Prisha again. She fucking hated lying to her. Focusing back at the task at hand, she and Willy decided to go down the corridor that mentioned family. Different sentences and phrases were etched across the walls. The quiet voices arguing in the background only seemed to fuel Violet’s uneasiness.

“Everything you do, everything you say proves that you’re a failure.” the voices echoed through the sanctum.

It wasn’t long before they ran into a set of shadows. Three of them stood hovering in the room at the end of the corridor. Willy stood hidden behind the left side while Violet hid on the right. “You take the one of the far left, I’ll deal with the other two.” Willy gave a thumbs up in acknowledgement. Violet looked down at her glove; she really wished she had her meat cleaver right now. Pulling off her glove and hitting her hand against her heart she summoned La Guillotine who made quick work of her first opponent. 

“Jack-a-Dandy!” Willy’s voice wavered as he stood gesturing for his persona to attack. The red punching glove shot out again, but this time it seemed to do next to nothing to the shadow.

“Shit,” Violet whispered, sliding over and pulling Willy out of the way when the shadow’s claws swooped down. The right side of her jaw got caught. A stream of red swam down the cut, dripping onto the floor.

“Violet!” Willy's eyes widened in fear.

“I’m fine! La Guillotine!” Violet instructed her persona who cut down the shadow without a second thought. She turned towards her teammate, grabbing his shoulders. “Willy, do you have any other moves?”

“Y-yeah,” Willy took a step forward, shielding Violet as he shouted out his next attack. “Frei!” His persona leaned back, folding its body in half before jolting forward. A blue orb centered around the shadow which suddenly exploded, causing the shadow to dissolve in seconds. 

“Holy shit,” Violet mumbled before smiling towards Willy. “Good job. Just keep using that.” Violet stumbled forward, entering the room further only to realize that it was a dead end. The only thing inside it were more words drawn on the wall. The voice repeating lines that were half-hearted and giving solutions that weren’t working. 

"I’ll change, I will. I can do it.” the tone sounded dulled and unconvincing.

Violet motioned for Willy to follow as they continued down another corridor marked “Beliefs”. They soon ran into a fork in the road to which Violet suggested they go left first then right considering that shadows were most likely in both areas. The left room only had a single shadow in it which Violet decimated within seconds. As they made their way down the other corridor Violet reached up to her cut, wincing when she touched it.

“Does it hurt?” Willy's question made her glance back at her younger teammate.

“Yeah, but it’s fine.” Violet looked at the blood on her fingers. If Brody couldn’t enter the rift, then that meant that she would be stuck with this cut. Which meant another lie that she had to come up with. The next room they entered had two shadows Willy quickly summoned his persona and set off another attack which blew the shadow to pieces. Violet dodged her enemy’s attack before unleashing her own and taking it out. The two continued on, sneaking down each corridor, peeking into each room cautiously while making their way to the owner of the sanctum. Luckily they hadn’t gotten any more injuries thanks to both their speed and teamwork. When they had checked every possible area except one corridor they took a break. 

“I’m really sorry, Violet.” Willy placed his head on top of his knees. 

Violet looked over at him, studying his expression and trying to come up with the right response. “It’s okay. I know that being a hero can be exciting, but it’s also dangerous. That’s why we need to lean on each other and not rush into anything.” Violet’s words seemed to help Willy as his expression softened. Violet got up. “We should go.”

“Right.”

The duo made their way down the last hallway, dealing with the last few shadows before meeting the sanctum’s owner who based on the chains that were crowded around her legs was chained up. 

Violet took a step forward. “Hey, I know this is confusing but it’s gonna be okay. I’m Violet and this is Willy.” She gestured to her partner who gave a friendly wave. Violet hoped she was doing this right; she was just copying what Clementine always did. “What’s your name?”

The girl looked up with a tear-stained face “Ella. My name is Ella Young.” Her hand shook as she spoke. “I can’t thank you enough. I was starting to worry I’d never leave this place.” With an appreciative smile the girl turned into a ball of light, disappearing before them. The sanctum began to melt around them bringing them back into their reality. Violet let out a sigh of relief that caused her whole body to let go of some of the tension. The two shared a thankful look, glad to finally have left the maze.

“Willy! Vi!” Brody wheezed as she ran forward, wrapping them both up in a tight hug. Her chest heaving, it was clear that she had just sprinted here “I’m so sorry! I came as quick as I could. You’re both okay, right? No injuries?” Her voice was filled with concern as she pulled away to get a better look at them. Her question was answered by the cut on Violet’s face. “Violet,” the name came out shakily as Brody examined the cut.

“I’m fine. It’s no big deal,” Violet waved a hand dismissively. “I need to go.”

“To get some help for that cut,” Brody grabbed Violet’s arm with an iron grip. “You’re coming too, Willy.” 

Willy nodded, walking beside the other two as the three of them made their way to the health center. Violet glanced over at Brody and Willy, a wave of comfort washing over her. They had made it out of the sanctum alive and safe.


	30. A Cleansing Rage

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Ruby hears news that breaks her heart and in her emotional state opens up her sanctum.

Ruby felt as if the wind had been knocked out of her. The words seemed as though they were a dream and not something she had just heard. Ms. Martin had cancer. Not only that but brain cancer, meaning that her chances were slim. Ruby felt her ears ring as her heartbeat thundered inside them. She felt tears starting to roll down her face which she tried to wipe away quickly. Ms. Martin sat in front of her and slowly reached out her hand and took it in her own.

“Ruby, are you okay? I know it’s a lot to take in.” Ms. Martin’s voice was gentle with concern.

Ruby didn’t respond.

“Ruby, please say something,” Ruby could see that she was saying something, but her mind refused to process it. Knowing Ms. Martin, it was probably some mixture of hopeful thinking and realism. But Ruby couldn’t take another moment of this. 

“I should go,” Ruby rose to her feet, slamming the door behind her before Ms.Martin could protest. She felt her face heat up as more tears escaped her eyes. Her heart ached with the whirlwind of emotions that she was feeling. The fear of losing someone dear to her made her heart feel numb inside, but the sadness proved that it was still there as a sharp pain twisted her heart. Her hands curled up into fists at her side as she ran out of the building. 

She wanted to be alone. She needed to be alone. Every second her emotions grew along with the rage at the unjust nature of the world. How could this happen? Ms. Martin was one of the sweetest people she knew; she didn’t deserve this. Ruby stopped outside of the building, leaning against the tree as her body shook. Overcome by everything. _This can’t be true. Ms. Martin doesn’t have cancer, she couldn’t._

\-----

“That was one of the craziest hangouts yet,” Louis exclaimed, swinging his hand that held Clementine’s. 

“Yeah, who would’ve thought that Go Fish could be so intense.” Brody called from the back of the group.

“Mitch and Marlon sure got into it,” Louis said, recalling the memory with fondness.

“So did you, Louis,” Violet stated, walking alongside her girlfriend in the middle of the group.

“Honestly with the three of you it was no wonder it turned too competitive,” Aasim shook his head as he brought up the rear. 

“You were pretty into it too,” Prisha looked back at Aasim who seemed shocked for a moment before looking away.

“That’s because he was trying to impress a certain someone,” Louis smiled mischievously behind him. Aasim’s expression made it clear that he did not appreciate his friend’s look.

“Who’s that?” Clementine asked, turning her head around her shoulder to look at Aasim.

“It starts with an R,” 

Aasim’s glare strengthened at Louis’ teasing tone. 

“You have a crush on Ruby?” Violet’s tone took an unexpected softness to it as she looked back in surprise. 

“That’s why you were acting competitive that night? To impress Ruby when she was there?” Brody asked to which Aasim’s face grew somewhat embarrassed. Everyone seemed excited by his reaction. They were right. 

“Oh my, it seems Lady Research isn’t the only one for you now,” Louis couldn’t get enough of this. 

“Shut up, Louis,” Aasim’s face took on a shade of red. 

“Louis,” Clementine looked over at her boyfriend who got the message. He quieted down.

“This is my stop,” Prisha’s words caused the group to halt. “I’ll see you later, Violet.”

“Yep,” Violet leaned forward, placing a quick kiss on Prisha’s cheek. Violet felt a bit embarrassed having done that in front of her friends, but Prisha’s smile made her doubts fade away. Prisha gave Violet’s hand a quick squeeze before letting go of it.

“Prisha, we’re still on for tomorrow for our music session, right?” Louis looked over at her excitedly.

“Of course,” Prisha’s face mirrored the excitement on her friend’s face. With that she walked off into the building. 

Louis glanced back at Violet with a playful smile. “My, my, Violet.”

Violet let out an annoyed groan. “Let’s keep moving.” Violet moved past the group and walked forward. The others soon caught up.

“Hey, Vi?” Clementine looked over as she walked beside her. “What did you tell Prisha about that cut?”

Violet didn’t look at Clementine’s eyes, her focus instead on the ground. “I told her that I was running late to class and I ran too close to that tree outside of Building S with that sharp branch. Sliced my jaw and that’s why I was late for our date.” Violet hated the fact that she had to do that but she felt even worse when Prisha had shown her such concern and comfort after she showed up with a bandaged face. Concern for an injury whose injury wasn’t true.

“She bought it?” Aasim called out from the back of the pack.

“Yeah,” Violet mumbled, kicking a stick out of her way in anger. 

“I can’t believe that Willy ran into that rift,” Brody looked upset. By her tone it sounded like she felt somewhat responsible. 

“We need to be careful from now on, make sure that he only goes on missions when we’re all together.” Clementine stated, her mind spinning with all the different concerns inside her head.

“And only a few missions.” Louis added.

“We also should think about finding a healing substitute in case Brody can’t make it on a mission,” Aasim suggested, looking forward and seeing Clementine who had a hand on her chin.

All these points were important and should be brought up. _I should also figure out a good workout schedule and routine. Maybe we could get the help of one of the trainers like Molly._

Louis glanced over at his girlfriend who was lost in thought, trying to piece together all the issues.

“Well, we’ll figure it out together,” Louis’ encouraging smile drew Clementine back into the conversation.

Brody made her way to the front to add to the conversation when she froze. A look of fear and confusion twisted her face. The group stopped in their tracks, their eyes following her to see what had caused such a reaction. Their hearts seemed to stop when they noticed Ruby standing by a rift before being swallowed up.

Brody didn’t wait a second longer, sprinting forward towards the rift. Her mind was only focused on one thing: her best friend’s safety. The rest of the team followed closely behind, being pulled into the rift alongside Brody. The sickening feeling consumed their stomachs, causing them to stumble slightly as they regained their bearings. They stood looking around at the sanctum. 

The walls were covered with windows old and dusty from time, while the room was filled with two rows of planters. On the left was a planter bursting in lavender, sage, calendula and echinacea, plants that were often used for their healing properties. The second row of planters held other types of plants such as water hemlock, nightshade and shite snakeroot, well-known poisons. Scattered amongst the two planters were venus fly traps that seemed to react towards any movement that happened near them. Old gardening tools were tossed across the greenhouse while piles of dirt and fertilizer covered the floor. 

“A greenhouse?” Louis walked by one of the planters, quickly backstepping when a venus fly trap almost snagged him. Clementine walked forward to a tall brown door, turning the doorknob slowly. The familiar corridor stood before them; the door that they all dreaded was in front of them. Brody’s eyes widened when she saw Ruby entering the room.

“Ruby!” Brody cried out, willing her legs to reach her friend in time. Her hand desperately reached out only for the door to slam in her face. Brody felt her heartbeat thunder in her ears as she tried to process the horrible truth. Ruby was a potential persona user and now she was stuck in that room until she accepted her persona or failed to do so. 

Her chest filled with an overwhelming sense of rage, no doubt what Ruby was feeling as it emitted from the door. Yanking off her glove, Brody slammed her hand against her heart. “Persona!” her voice cracked while she instructed Ophelia to use all of her power to destroy the door.

The others stood around, each of them being slowly consumed by the rage. Aasim paced back and forth, trying to take a deep, calming breath as he worried about Ruby. Clementine watched in silence, struggling to keep a level head as Brody continued to attack the door. 

“Fuck, fuck fuck, fuck,” Brody whispered, willing her persona to attack the door with even more power. 

“Brody,” Louis tried to keep his voice calm as he walked forward. “It’s going to be okay.”

“Louis,” Violet glared at him, her voice filled with warning.

He hesitated for a moment before continuing. “Ruby’s smart. She’ll be able to get through this.”

“Would you just shut the fuck up!” Brody hissed at Louis, her face twisted in rage as tears began to stream down her face. “You don’t get to say that! We all saw what happened to Sarah!” She turned her attention back to the door, her persona’s magic draining with each minute. Everyone shared a worried look as they tried to contain their own rage, building more and more thanks to the sanctum and their friend’s futile attempts to save Ruby.

\-----

Ruby looked around the room with confusion. She had hoped that this would be the exit to the greenhouse that she had randomly entered, but all that was here was a few chairs and a table. She couldn’t remember how she had exactly gotten into this place. Her mind was trying to get recentered when she noticed an eerie sight. There standing in front of her with an angry smile was herself.

“Who-” she was cut off immediately by the other person.

“Who am I?” It strolled forward, placing its hands on the table. “I am you and you are me.”

“That’s not possible.” Ruby wanted to move further away, but her legs wouldn’t let her. They felt like they had been cemented to the floor. The construct let out a casual laugh.

“Oh, but it is. I know everything about you: your past, your present, your rage.”

Ruby seemed to lock eyes with the construct at that last part, a look of surprise on her face.

“Oh yes, I do know about that. I have to ask you...” the construct ran its fingers across the table, “Aren’t you tired of being nice?” It looked up with anger-filled eyes, a hidden malice dancing within them. “Don’t you just want to break something, scream at the world and just let your rage burn?”

“I don’t know what you’re talking about.” Ruby tried to keep eye contact as she denied the construct’s words. 

The construct chuckled before slamming its hands on the table. “Don’t lie to me!” Its eyes burned with annoyance. “I know about your past.”

Ruby flinched at the action before pausing. There was no way they could know about her past, how she struggled with her anger. Could they?

Its voice suddenly changed to one that Ruby thought she’d never hear again. “I don’t know who the hell you think you are! But your daughter needs to learn to control herself or else I will make sure she gets expelled! That's a promise!”

Ruby felt a shiver run down her spine. That voice…. It was that one mother who yelled at Ruby’s mom because of the fight she had gotten into. When she had hit a kid too hard. She remembered that day, how much shame and remorse was on her mom’s face as she apologized again and again. But she had grown since then. She didn’t have anything close to the anger that she once did. 

“That was the past,” Ruby stumbled backwards, her feet finally working again. “I’ve changed since then.”

The construct doubled over in a fit of laughter, clutching its sides before its eyes shot up to meet hers, a sickening look within them. Its head twitched for a moment before it curled up a fist and punched the side of the table. The table’s edge splintered off, sending pieces of wood flying around the room. The construct stormed forward, standing in front of Ruby. Its face mere inches from her own. “You can never escape your past,” It leaned forward, whispering into Ruby’s ear “Besides, after what happened today are you really that sure that your rage is gone?”

Ruby’s eyes widened in shock. There was no way that it knew about Ms. Martin did it? One look into its smug eyes and cocky face made the answer clear. 

\-----

Brody had run out of magic except for one spell’s worth she’d saved just in case of injury. She stared angrily at the door for a minute. The countless attacks she had made on the door had accomplished nothing. Even though it was now splintered and worn down it still stood unfazed. Brody’s eyes hardened as she punched the door, causing the others to look over with shock and concern. She hit it again and again, pulling at the corners and whacking her body against it. Her knuckles were soon slick with blood, but the pain she felt coursing through her hands was nothing compared to her heart. _If Ruby ends up like Sarah…._

The fear that played in her heart only fueled her rage as tears fell to the floor along with her blood. The wet thud of her fists against the door made the others try and think of the best course of action. They knew all they could do was wait but they needed to stop Brody before she hurt herself more. “Shit, shit, shit,” she whispered, a nail peeling back as she tried to open the door. She couldn’t lose Ruby. She couldn’t. Her throat burned as she continued her onslaught. Aasim slowly walked forward, reaching out his hand. 

“Brody, I understand how you feel. I’m really worried too,” His voice shook with emotion. “I’m scared, but we can get through this together.” He placed a comforting hand on Brody’s shoulder. 

Brody immediately turned around, pushing Aasim to the ground. “I won’t stop! Not until I open the door!” her eyes burned with anger, challenging him to dare and stand up again. “ I WON’T LOSE RUBY! She screamed, causing the others to flinch. Their own emotions and rage rose with each passing moment. Clementine looked around as her team tried to contain their anger while Brody continued to spiral out of control. Louis shuffled forward, helping up Aasim. Brody turned her focus back on the door, blood splattering as she hit it again and again.

Clementine looked over at Violet; they shared the same thought. There was no way to stop Brody. All they could do was wait. They looked at their friend, her hair disheveled as she kicked the door. Would they really act any differently if someone they cared about deeply was in there?

\----

Ruby refused to believe it. They couldn’t know about Ms. Martin. The construct made their way back to the table.

“It really pisses you off, doesn’t it? Hearing that news. Brain cancer. No way in hell she’s beating that. Even if she did, she could still end up with some sort of brain damage.” The construct’s voice was thick with undying rage. “What’s the point of medicine if you can’t even save the one you love?!” It took the chair and smashed it against the wall. “IT’S NOT FAIR! FORGET ABOUT EVERYTHING!” the construct yelled at the top of its lungs, striding forward towards Ruby once again. “You deserve to rage, don’t you?” It balled up its fists. “DON’T YOU!?!” Its chest rose and fell with anger. “You are your rage! So why not feed it?”

Ruby stood unsure of what to say. It was right. It wasn’t fair that Ms. Martin had to suffer, it wasn’t right that medicine couldn’t surely cure her. She did have this ball of rage inside of her. She felt her stomach twist with anger as her hands curled into fists. Suddenly a contract appeared on the table. 

“Sign this and everything will make sense! You can be free!” The construct stared into her eyes. Ruby glanced down, trying to take in everything. They were right; her rage wasn’t gone. She still had it buried within her. It was stronger than she remembered.

_Am I… my rage?_

Ruby’s mind was pulled back to a memory. A memory from her senior year of high school. Brody and her sat together on the steps enjoying the spring breeze. Ruby had called Brody outside to tell her about her past with her anger issues. She wasn’t sure how her friend was going to take it. 

“So, what did you want to tell me?” Brody looked over at her with her kind smile. 

“Back when I was younger I used to have issues with dealing with my anger. Sometimes it got bad and I ended up hurting folks.” Ruby’s voice faded out near the end. No way would Brody’s opinion of her not change after this. “I worked on it, but still I know that sometimes I can get a bit too extreme with my emotions.”

Ruby and Brody sat together in silence for a moment. 

“Y’ know how I had that panic attack the other day?” Brody leaned forward, placing her hands on her knees. “How I freaked out and ran towards the school gate and you followed after me? Even after I pushed you away, you still stayed with me. Helped me get through that. You don’t think any less of me because of it, do you?”

Ruby looked slightly confused by her friend’s question. “No, why would I? I know it’s hard for you during that time, but it’s not your fault if you have an attack.”

“That’s how I feel about what you told me. Even if you’re still struggling at points, it won’t change the fact that you’re still my best friend. It also doesn’t make you bad either.” Brody leaned over, wrapping Ruby up in a hug. “You always tell me when I feel down that I’m more than my attacks. The same applies to you.”

When she pulled away she saw Ruby’s surprised expression. “We’ll always be best friends, right?” Brody asked, holding out her pinky.

Ruby felt her face brighten up, locking her pinky with Brody’s. “Always.”

Ruby felt her fists loosen and fall to her sides. “I’m more,” she looked up at the construct who looked confused.

“What?”

“I’m more than my rage. It’s true that I still have anger inside me, but I won’t let it take over! I’m going to gather all my emotions and use them to help others! Not to harm them!” Her eyes danced with determination. 

The construct’s chest was suddenly consumed with a white orb. It clutched its sides desperately. “NO! Stop! Feel your rage, let it consume you!” Its eyes hardened when it looked at Ruby. Dashing forward it swung its fist towards the wall behind her, cracking it. “This won’t change anything!” it cried out before exploding, leaving an empty spot where it once stood in front of Ruby. 

Ruby took a shaky breath, glad that it was finally over. She was about to start looking for an exit when her heart felt a sharp pain, as though a knife had embedded itself inside. It felt almost as if she was having a heart attack. Crying out, she felt tears run down her face. She wanted it to stop; she could barely breathe. Just when she thought it may have ended a new pain joined in, appearing from her hand as a flame licked against it forming a sigil with a flower. She fell over, grasping at the floor as the pain continued. It was unbearable... until suddenly it stopped. Ruby collapsed to the floor, letting the relief wash over her as the pain slowly died down. 

When she glanced over at the spot she was surprised to see another being there. A giant tree stood proudly in front of her, hovering in the air. In the middle of it was a being writhing underneath the surface of the bark. Along the sides of the tree red dark sap spilled out, coating itself along the tree roots. The being looked over at Ruby with a warm expression that seemed to lessen the intensity of the moment. 

“You’ve awakened. I hoped as much.” 

Ruby stood silent, not clear on how to respond. 

“I am Yggdrasil.” Its voice was soft and whispery.

“I’m Ruby,” she replied. It would be rude not to give your name after they did. 

_I am thou, thou art I.  
By casting away the falsehoods placed within your heart and opening your eyes to the truth,  
I have come from the depths of your soul  
to help in your pursuit of justice. _

It gave another smile while it changed into a ball of light and rushed into Ruby’s heart. Ruby stood shocked by all that had happened when she heard the door behind her slam open. Turning around she saw Brody who ran forward, pulling her into a tight hug. 

“Ruby! Oh, thank God! I was so worried! I….I-” Brody couldn’t get any more words out as she cried, choking on her tears. Her body shook with each sob. Ruby returned the hug, confused by why her best friend was here but glad that she was nonetheless. Glancing up, she noticed familiar faces who all seemed relieved that she was okay. 

Brody pulled away, wiping away her tears when Ruby noticed her injuries. Both of her hands were caked in blood. Purples and yellows colored her knuckles and elbows. As she dried her tears blood had begun to collect on her face. 

Ruby gently cupped her friend’s hands. “Brody,” Her voice seeped with concern. 

“Oh no, don’t worry, Ruby, I’m fine.” Brody insisted, waving her hands.

Ruby always hated when Brody got like this. Taking off the glove that now covered her right hand, she placed it on her heart, whispering a single word. “Persona,” Yggdrasil appeared behind her. The red sap pooled around Brody’s wounds, a warm sensation covering her hands and elbows before the injuries disappeared. Clementine and the others stepped forward, shocked by the event.

“You’re a healer!” Louis stared in awe.

Clementine looked over at the pair of friends when the attendee's voice entered her head. 

_I am thou, thou art I  
Thou hast acquired a new bond  
It shall become the voice of justice  
That soothes thine anguish from oppression_

_With the birth of the Empress Persona,  
One of comfort and care  
I have obtained the tongue of truth  
That shall lead to balance and new power_

Clementine looked on as Ruby talked with Brody, a gentle expression on her face as she examined her hands. _Another healer and one that seems so fitting. She’ll be a good addition to the team._ A smile overtook her face as she saw the others gather around Ruby. 

“Oh, I can fix your injury too,” she gestured to Violet.

“No thanks,” Violet looked away.

“What? Why not, Vi?” Louis looked over at her with an expression of confusion and concern.

“If my injury just magically disappears, then Prisha will wonder how it happened.” Everyone seemed to understand right away. This would be an injury that Violet needed to keep. The sanctum slowly melted around them, throwing them back into their reality in front of one of the buildings.

“We can tell you everything as soon as we get to a quiet spot,” Clementine motioned for the team to follow her and soon they found a good spot. It took them a while to explain everything to Ruby who still seemed surprised by all the information, but it was clear that after what she had gone through she had no choice but to believe. 

“We even have arcana types,” Louis said proudly, leaning back on his hands. “I’m the Lovers.”

Violet rolled her eyes, giving a tired groan. 

“You’re just jealous,” Louis smirked in her direction. 

“Anyway,” Clementine’s voice stopped the two from arguing any more. “We do have specific arcana types. As Louis said, he’s the Lovers, Brody is the High Priestess, Vi’s the Moon, Aasim’s the Hierophant, Willy isn’t here but he’s the Magician and you’re the Empress.” 

Ruby looked at each of them as they acknowledged their arcana. “Clem, what's your Arcana type?” Ruby’s question shocked the rest of the group.

“I don’t know.” Clementine’s face fell at the realization. The others quickly picked up on this and Louis tried to change the topic. 

“So, Ruby, it’s pretty cool summoning your persona, huh? The sigil of that flower glows and BAM!” Louis posed dramatically with his hands “Persona!”

“Oh, you mean the jasione flower?” Ruby was met with confused faces. “That’s the flower on our hands. It symbolizes justice and rightfulness.”

“That seems very fitting,” Aasim commented, smiling towards Ruby. 

“I mean we are heroes after all.” Louis flopped backwards on the grass. 

“Speaking of heroes, Ruby, would you like to join our team?” Clementine’s question was received by a shocked expression before a warm smile appeared on Ruby’s face. 

“I’d love to.” 

Everyone’s faces brightened at those words when suddenly Brody fell over.

“Brody!” Ruby reached out but just missed catching her as she fell onto the grass.

“She’ll be fine,” Violet stated calmly. “Just needs to rest. She used a lot of her magic today trying to reach you.”

Ruby still didn’t seem convinced. Aasim rose to his feet. 

“I can help carry her back to your dorm. We are finished for the day, right?” He looked back at Clementine who nodded before looking at Ruby for confirmation. 

“Alright,” She stood up and helped place Brody on Aasim’s back. The two waved goodbye and headed back to the dorm.

It was a short walk to the dorm, the stairs giving Aasim’s legs a stinging burn as he walked to the door. After Ruby opened it, he placed Brody down gently on her bed. 

“Ok, she should be fine.”

“Hey Aasim, can we talk?” Ruby asked shyly.

“Sure,” he responded, unsure what she wanted to say.

“Not here though,” She grabbed his arm which caused his heart to flip in his chest. Ruby guided him to the middle of the hallway which led to a vending machine. She stopped there, looking around for a moment before looking back at Aasim. She seemed nervous for some reason. “I know this is sudden and all, but after today I figured I should just go for it. Aasim, I like you.”

Aasim felt his heart stop at her words. Was he really hearing her right? A blush appeared on his face as he tugged on one his jacket strings. She liked him. “I like you too, Ruby.” he looked down at her and saw a joyful smile on her face which he immediately mirrored. He still couldn’t believe it. His feelings had been reciprocated. Ruby liked him.


	31. Exhaustion Creeping In

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Clementine pushes herself to the limit.

Aasim felt his body shake as he yawned. The stiffness in his neck from the last class only seemed to become stronger as he walked out of the building. Maybe it would be best if he found a quiet spot for a while and enjoyed the peace and calm that it brought. His thoughts were halted however when he saw Clementine sitting alone at a table. Her eyes were glued to the screen in front of her. A mixture of curiosity and politeness compelled him to walk towards her. “Hey, Clem,” 

She looked up at him when she heard his voice. “Hey, Aasim,” she replied before returning her attention to the laptop. Aasim leaned forward, wondering what had drawn his friend’s attention so strongly. He was surprised when he saw the answer. There on the laptop was a tab opened on the different arcana types. Twenty two different names were displayed on the screen. He recalled the conversation the team had the other day when Ruby had successfully gotten her persona. Clementine had known of everyone’s arcana type except her own. He had been wondering if this fact had bugged her; now his theory had been confirmed.

“Are you trying to figure out your arcana type?” Aasim walked over to sit beside her, placing his backpack on the ground. Clementine glanced over at him with an expression that made it clear that his question had been unexpected. 

“I know it probably shouldn’t be bothering me,” She leaned back in her chair, her head looking up at the clouds. “But it does.”

“It makes sense. Everyone else on the team knows their type and having that knowledge makes them feel even more connected to their roles as persona users. I know that when I heard about mine I looked up the Hierophant as soon as I got to my dorm room.” Aasim had a sympathetic look as he watched Clementine process his words. 

“Was it fitting? The hierophant?” Clementine’s question caused Aasim to shift his weight.

“It was for the most part.” He looked over at the building in front of them, students filing out and moving on to the next part of their schedule. “If you want I could help you,”

Clementine thought about the answer for a moment before nodding. “I’d appreciate it.” She moved the laptop in between the two of them. Aasim then proceeded to grab the team notebook out his bag. 

“It’s always good to keep a record,” he stated with a smile. With that the pair started to go over the different types, immediately eliminating the ones that had already been assigned to other members of the team. “I think we should also find the ones that are least likely to fit with you, like the Devil.” He motioned towards the screen which spoke of how those of the Devil arcana were usually greedy and proud, not giving much thought to the well-being of others. 

They also eliminated the Tower. They then found quite a few options that seemed like potential candidates, but nothing that felt truly fitting for Clementine. After a while they decided to take a quick break. Aasim offered to grab some drinks and snacks which Clementine gratefully accepted. He made his way over to the vending machines, returning with a few bags of chips, an ice tea for him and a Pepsi for her. They enjoyed the quiet as they ate their snack.  
Then suddenly Aasim’ eyes widened when he saw the Fool arcana. Clicking the link, his eyes quickly read through the description. 

“I think this is it,” He pushed the laptop to face Clementine. “The Fool represents freedom, innocence and divine inspiration. You’re the only one of us to have access to the Velvet Room. It also seems like the type most likely to be a jack of all trades which seems to fit with your Wild Card ability.”

Clementine placed a hand on her chin, taking in all of his points. It did seem like the most likely candidate for her arcana type; all the others seemed off in one way or the other. “The Fool, huh?” 

“It’s the best bet,” Aasim offered with a shrug.

“I like it,” Clementine reached over and added in her arcana type below the others, leaving a question mark at the end of the statement. It still wasn’t fully determined, but it felt right. 

“Thanks, Aasim,” Clementine gave a warm smile.

“Think nothing of it. I should get going though. With exams coming up it’s best to hit the books while you still can.” He rose, tossing the notebook in his bag before walking away, offering Clementine one final wave. Clementine returned the gesture, happy to have friends that were willing to give their time for her.

\-----

Louis looked at his desk, a foggy feeling surrounding his mind. He had just finished his assignments for the day which meant it was time to hop back onto Discord. Opening the Team Fun #basic chat, he was pleasantly surprised to see the newest member had joined in. 

Sing-us-a-song: _Ruby!  
Cool name _

RubyRose: _aww thanks Louis_

Bro: _It’s a really pretty username  
Maybe I should change mine _

Sing-us-a-song: _No  
Don't do it Bro  
I think your username is cool too _

Bro: _thanks_

RubyRose: _there sure are a lot of things to get used to on here_

Sing-us-a-song: _true but once you do it’s a ton of fun_

Louis paused in the middle of typing his next sentence. A wave of inspiration struck him. Jumping over to Persona Pals, he opened up the #general chat.

Sing-us-a-song: _I guess it has become clear who the genius is on the team_

Knife2MeetU: _Louis_

Sing-us-a-song: _that’s right!_

Knife2MeetU: _what’s your point  
It’s not you _

Sing-us-a-song: _how rude vi  
I will power through your mean comment   
We should make a brochure _

Knife2MeetU: _why?  
For what? _

Sing-us-a-song: _in case we get any new members again_

Bro: _that’s actually a good idea_

RubyRose: _it does sound fun to make_

Sing-us-a-song: _haha  
Yes that’s two yeses _

Aasim: _we could just explain it to the new member. I still am not sure why we would make a brochure. Considering we don’t know how many more members will join if any._

Sing-us-a-song: _wow someone’s a party pooper_

RubyRose: _It could make it easier. There was a lot to explain Assim_

Sing-us-a-song: _lol_

RubyRose: _*Aasim_

Sing-us-a-song: _ass_

Aasim: _Louis!  
Fine. I’ll consider the idea. _

Bro: _@OrangeuGlad should also weigh in_

Knife2MeetU: _i agree_

OrangeuGlad: _I’ve been summoned?  
That actually could be a good idea  
We can talk about it at the meeting in a couple days  
Can’t talk anymore got assignments to finsih _

Louis put his phone down for a minute. It was just an idea on a whim, but it could be helpful. He just hoped that it wouldn’t put more pressure on Clementine; he could tell that these last few weeks had been exhausting for her. With a quick, encouraging text to his girlfriend he returned to Discord, hoping to have some more fun conversations.

\------

Clementine felt her eyes slowly close before she forced them open; it had been a long day. Exams were so nearby and the meeting for the team was tomorrow; she really needed to make sure everything was in order. They needed to talk about formation when entering into sanctums, healing, training, and any issues that the members had. Not to mention a million other things. It was hard enough keeping track of her classes and balancing her free time, but being a leader had been so much more demanding than she’d expected. 

Suddenly her phone buzzed, the Discord notification sound ringing out. Glancing at it, she wondered what they could be talking about. Clementine shook her head, focusing back on the last few notes she needed to take. Discord could wait a few minutes. Her hands danced across the pages as she filled them with seemingly endless notes for the team meeting. Closing her notebook and taking a long, tired yawn, she reached for her phone. Seeing the screen, she realized it was past one in the morning. She decided to open up Team Fun anyway though.

Sing-us-a-song: _So then it got me thinking if I was a fish could I be as smart as the fish in Finding Nemo  
Could I break out of a fish tank  
Escape and get back home  
Could any of us _

Aasim: _We could if we used a good strategy_

PrishaFacie: _I agree. All it takes is a good strategy and teamwork to succeed._

Bro: _I think I would be too scared_

Sing-us-a-song: _that’s why we have each other  
To encourage each other right Violet? _

Knife2MeetU: _sure_

Sing-us-a-song: _see  
We’ll be unstoppable!  
Team Fun fish group _

OrangeuGlad: _who are we breaking out  
Only one fish escapes _

Sing-us-a-song: _Clem!_

Bro: _how’s it going?_

Sing-us-a-song: _all of us  
Leave no fish behind _

OrangeuGlad: _hey guys  
Good   
Tired   
Just finished all my assignments _

PrishaFacie: _Exams are coming up. Is everyone prepared?_

Sing-us-a-song: _as prepared as i can be_

Bro: _I hope so_

Knife2MeetU: _probably not_

Sing-us-a-song: _So back to fun  
What animal would you want to be if you had to choose _

Knife2MeetU: _didn’t we already talk about this in the PP Server?_

PrishaFacie: _PP Server?_

Violet dropped her phone. _Fuck._ She couldn’t believe that she had been the one to mess it up. She always thought that Louis would be the weakest link and that would be the way Prisha found out about personas. But it was her. 

Sing-us-a-song: _Philosophy Pals_

OrangeuGlad: _Period Pals_

PrishaFacie: _Period Pals?_

OrangeuGlad: _period as in class period  
For philosophy  
It was a server we made earlier on to help each other with our assignments _

Knife2MeetU: _yeah although now it’s just used for stupid shit_

Sing-us-a-song: _It’s important topics_

PrishaFacie: _Oh, okay_

Clementine looked at the chat, not sure if Prisha had really bought it. But the chat went on regardless.

Knife2MeetU: _what animal you want to be is not important_

Sing-us-a-song: _says the one who talked so passionately about being a wolf_

Knife2MeetU: _shut_

PrishaFacie: _you would choose a wolf?_

Sing-us-a-song: _I wanted to be a songbird  
That way everyone could hear my captivating voice  
What about you guys? _

Bro: _porcupine  
No one would bother me _

Knife2MeetU: _I would get to just be alone and enjoy the stars_

Bro: _I’d be safe_

PrishaFacie: _Perhaps a gazelle. Strong and graceful._

OrangeuGlad: _all good choices  
I choose a Bernese dog so I could go into the mountains and save people by digging them out of the snow _

PrishaFacie: _Wow, that’s a noble reason._

OrangeuGlad: _Also I’d be BUFF_

Sing-us-a-song: _what about you Assim?_

Assim: _Stop it Louis.  
I’d be a raven since they are smart and resourceful creatures. _

Bro: _I thought you’d want to be an owl or something_

Assim: _Owls are actually quite dumb.  
Wait why did my name change.  
LOUIS! _

Sing-us-a-song: _lol_

Knife2MeetU: _ass_

Clementine chuckled at the chat before letting another long yawn escape her mouth. She couldn’t stay up any longer. After a quick goodbye she got changed and tucked herself in, ready for a peaceful night’s sleep in preparation for the busy day tomorrow. 

\----

It was early evening when Clementine arrived at the meeting spot. Louis was already sitting there and gave a friendly wave, his face brightening instantly when he saw her.

“Hey, Clem,” he leaned over and planted a quick kiss on her cheek as she sat down. His face fell in concern as he noticed the heavy bags under her eyes. “Are you doing okay?”

“I’m fine, just gotta get through this meeting and then I’ll be able to take a break,” She grabbed her notebook and began to organize her notes for the team meeting. 

“I don’t know, Clem. I could run the meeting if you need me to.” he offered with a warm smile. 

She looked over at her boyfriend, returning the smile before shaking her head. “I’m-” she was cut off by a yawn. “I’m fine.” After a few minutes she had gotten everything organized.

“Oh, that reminds me, the funniest thing happened in my French class today,” Louis began, hoping to fill in the time until the others showed up only to stop when Clementine’s head fell over and landed on his shoulder. He was concerned for a minute but soon a wave of thankfulness washed over him. She really needed the sleep. Carefully he shifted the notes over to him. After a few minutes the others showed up.

“Hey, Lou-” Brody stopped herself when she saw Clementine’s sleeping form.

“What happened?” Aasim whispered, sliding into the first available seat while the others followed suit.

“She had been setting up for the meeting and ended up falling asleep.” Louis whispered, glancing over at his sleeping girlfriend.

“Makes sense,” Violet grumbled with her arms crossed. “She’s been pushing herself way too hard with school and all this persona stuff.”

“It must be really hard being the leader,” Ruby looked over at her friend who seemed at peace as she slept. 

“So, what are we going to do about the meeting?” Brody looked towards Louis.

“I’ll be leading it,” Louis gestured at the notes in front of him.

The others looked at each other for a minute before nodding in agreement. Louis gently cleared his throat, focusing on the notes in front of him. There were so many; it must’ve taken Clementine forever to finish all this. 

“Alright, the first thing it says is to not touch the bag….” He looked confused and one glance up made it clear the others felt the same. “I don’t know what that means, but no one touch the bag.”   
He moved onto the next point. “Happy news: I’m the fool?!”

“Oh, she means the Fool Arcana. I helped her try to figure her type out.” Aasim put in.

The team all seemed to accept that and so Louis continued on, first bringing up the issues that Clementine had seen such as healing, formation and strategy. 

“She’s been overworking herself,” Brody stated sadly, looking at the huge pile of papers.

“We should’ve picked up on it,” Ruby added, leaning over to get a better look at the notes.

“We did, we just didn’t do anything about it,” Violet leaned back in her seat, upset by her own lack of helpfulness. “We should split up the different areas of Clementine’s duties as a leader.”

“That would make a lot of sense.” Aasim agreed. “If we help shoulder the burden, it will make it easier on her.”

“Do you think Clem will agree with it?” Louis looked slightly unsure. “She can be stubborn.”

“Stubborn but not stupid,” Violet pulled the pages towards her. “I can help with weapon management and anything else to do with that.”

“Ruby and I can take care of all things to do with healing,” Brody offered. 

Ruby nodded in agreement. “I’ve been thinking that maybe if we make some sort of potion or powder out of medicinal herbs then we could bring it into sanctums.”

“You think sanctums will have the same effect on healing items as weapons,” Aasim guessed, smiling when Ruby's smile grew. 

“That’s right.”

Louis looked at the two of them, his eyes darting back and forth. “Holy shit, I called it,”

“What?” Ruby looked over at Louis.

“You and Aasim. You’re a thing now, aren’t you?” The look on Ruby and Aasim’s faces confirmed it for Louis who gave a little cheer. He froze though when Clementine groaned and shifted in her sleep. The whole group stayed silent and still, only moving once Clementine was asleep again. Louis gave two quick kisses on top of Clementine’s head before continuing the meeting. “I can help with figuring out our magic supply. How many spells we can use, if our capacities grow with time, as well as recording any new information from fights.” Everyone seemed happy with Louis’ role. 

“Then I’ll help Clementine with strategy and formation. Hopefully that will decrease the chances of injuries.” Aasim pulled out a few blank pieces of paper from his folder. “We should write these down for Clementine when she wakes up.”

“Oh, and we should jot down any questions we might have,” Brody added.

“And maybe even some encouraging words for her. Being a leader is tough, especially from what I heard about the sanctums and such.” Ruby suggested with a warm smile. The group immediately got to work, filling out their roles before moving onto the questions they had. Once that had been completed each of them left an encouraging message for Clem and with that the meeting was done. The team gave their congrats to the new couple before one by one they left. Ruby and Aasim’s joined hands swayed as they walked away, caught up in their own conversation. That left only Louis, Clementine and Violet. 

“If you want, I can stay. Keep you company for a bit while you wait,” Violet offered, but Louis shook his head.

“Don’t worry about it. You should go. I don’t mind waiting alone.” 

Violet seemed a bit unconvinced by her friend's words. She sat back down and was met with a surprised look by Louis. “You’d be bored out of your mind. Besides, Prisha’s class doesn’t end for another two hours.”

Louis gave an appreciative smile and the two began to talk about random topics to kill the time. Soon the two hours were up however and Clementine was still asleep. Violet had gone and Louis was stuck there alone. Pulling out his phone, he checked his social media, letting the time pass and giving his girlfriend the much needed nap. 

Clementine felt her eyes flutter open. A relaxed feeling danced inside her until she realized where her head was. Bolting up, she saw that Louis had the same surprised face as her. “Louis? What happened? Where is everyone?”

“They left after the meeting. Don’t worry,” He gave a reassuring smile when he saw her worried expression. “I led it and everything was fine. Here’s the list of roles that we came up with to help lessen the burden on your shoulders, as well as the team’s questions.” He then leaned forward and grabbed a folded piece of paper. “This is a gift from the team as well,” The words _Read At Home_ were written on the front in Ruby’s handwriting. 

Clementine leaned back as she tried to take in all the information. “How long was I out for? An hour?”

“Four,”

“What?”

“You were out for four hours.”

“Shit, AJ and Lee must be worried.” 

“I texted them and let them know you’d be home a bit late,” Louis rose up and offered her his hand. “I could walk you home if you’d like.”

Clementine couldn’t help but smile up at her boyfriend and accept his hand. The two walked towards the gate and down the street. Her eyes fell upon the papers in her hands. She really had been pushing herself too hard. _Not really being the best leader._ Clementine internally scolded herself. And yet the team had reached out their hands and offered their help. Clementine felt a warmth wrap around her hand. Glancing down, she noticed Louis' hand gently covering hers. She felt an inner glow swell inside her as she smiled at him. 

_I think it’s about time that I accept the help. For what’s a leader without her team?_


	32. Exam Week

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Clementine and her friends study for exam week.

It was a beautiful day out. The sun was shining brightly and the clouds covered the rays just enough to make it the perfect temperature. Violet looked around at the flowers that covered the area. Different colors popped up here and there throughout the locations making it a calming sight to take in. Violet reached out and wrapped her hand over Prisha’s which caused her girlfriend to look over her way, a bright smile on her face. It was nice to finally have a chance to go on a date again especially with the hecticness that exam week was going to bring. The two walked silently throughout the botanical garden, enjoying the sights as they crossed over a bridge. Not many people were there that day which was fine with Violet; she liked the peacefulness of this moment. Taking in every second that she had with Prisha. 

“That’s a lovely flower,” Prisha motioned over to a dark plum flower which stood tall against the bench they had just passed.

“Yeah, it is.” Violet’s smile grew a little bigger when she looked towards the flower. The pair continued on their walk, pointing out different flowers and plants as they strolled through the garden. After a while they had decided to take a break and sat down on one of the nearby benches. Violet looked up at the sky while the clouds rolled by when she felt Prisha’s thumb brush against hers. Glancing over she noticed that Prisha’s attention was on the sky as well, unaware of what she was doing. Violet was about to look away when she got caught up in Prisha’s eyes. They always shone beautifully in the sunlight; the warmth within was so gripping that Violet sometimes got lost in them. Just then Prisha looked over, locking eyes with Violet. Violet quickly glanced away. _Shit, that was probably weird._ Violet was pulled out her thoughts when she felt her hand being lightly squeezed, drawing her attention back to Prisha. The two of them looked at each other for a moment, tranquil smiles on their faces. 

“So, exams are next week,” Prisha stated, kicking her leg slowly on the ground. “Do you think you’re ready?”

“I don’t know. Exams are always a pain in the ass, so probably not.”

“Well, I can help you study,” Prisha offered with a kind smile.

Violet glanced over at her girlfriend, happy that she offered but unsure if it would be too distracting if they studied together. “What about you?” Violet asked, moving away from the offer. “Are you ready?”

Prisha let out a tired sigh. “I'm sure I will be after these next couple of days, but I know there will be some trick questions on an exam or two.”

“So, this may be a dumb question, but why did you choose a law major?” Violet’s question caused Prisha to stop kicking her foot. Her expression turned focused as she thought deeply about it. 

“I’ve always been interested in the idea of justice as well as law and while I know that the system isn’t perfect, I figured the best place to make a difference would be from the inside. If you want to enact change, you have to go into the belly of the beast to do so.” Prisha’s gaze turned back to the sky. “There is a sort of abstract beauty of justice revealing the innate desire of mankind to improve themselves.” 

Violet watched Prisha as she spoke. Her passion for her major was clear. Violet felt something inspiring within her girlfriend’s words. She still hadn’t decided on a major and seeing how heartfelt Prisha was about law made her realize something. She was envious (even if it was just a little) at Prisha for knowing what she wanted to do with her future. _Shit, I hope Prisha doesn’t ask me the same question back. I’d look like a total idiot after what she said. I still haven’t decided on a major._ “That's really cool,”

Prisha’s smile grew at Violet’s words. “What about you Vi?”

“I…” Violet looked towards the ground. “I’m still undecided,” She leaned back on the bench. “I figured that when I found the right major it would just click and I’d go from there. Nothing special or impressive about it,” Violet gave a halfhearted shrug.

“I disagree,”

Violet looked over at Prisha with a confused expression. 

“I have a plan because I fear that if I don’t everything will fall apart. But there’s something admirable about the way you go through life without a plan. Confident and not stressing out about it.”

Violet felt her face grow hot at the compliment. “Thanks,” she whispered as she looked back at Prisha, locking eyes with her once more. Before she had even fully formed the thought Violet had leaned forward, capturing Prisha’s lips in a kiss. The moment felt like it had been frozen in time as they both leaned into it. When they pulled away, they two looked at each other with shy smiles. 

“Shall we go?” Prisha rose to her feet and held out her hand to which Violet soon followed, intertwining their fingers once more as they continued down the path.

\------

Exams were fast approaching. Ruby knew that she needed to set a firm schedule if she was going to get the best grades possible. Her pencil tapped against the desk as she looked over at her textbook, searching for the last term she needed. When she had found it her hand immediately shot towards the notecard and filled it in. Taking a deep breath, she reached for her phone and decided that she had earned a quick break. She opened up the Team Fun server, double checking to make sure the sound was off so as to not disturb the other students studying in the library.

Sing-us-a-song: _Do you ever hear a song and you’re like  
HOLY SHIT  
How are they that good?  
Liszt was a genius _

OrangeuGlad: _I’ll need to check out his music_

Knife2MeetU: _How can you even study with music in the background  
It’s so fucking distracting _

Aasim: _Well studies have shown that classical music does help with studying._

PrishaFacie: _Although it seems that a person’s preference also plays a role._

RubyRose: _hi y’all_

Aasim: _Hello Rudy_

Sing-us-a-song: _lol_

Aasim: _*Ruby_

Sing-us-a-song: _save for presh mems_

Knife2MeetU: _what are you talking about Louis?_

Bro: _hahahahahhahahhah  
I hate exam week _

OrangeuGlad: _Brody are you okay?_

Sing-us-a-song: _BRO?!?_

OrangeuGlad: _Ruby are you with her?_

RubyRose: _No I’ve been studying in the library_

OrangeuGlad: _I’m worried.  
Is anyone free right now? _

PrishaFacie: _I am_

RubyRose: _I have some time_

Knife2MeetU: _same here_

Sing-us-a-song: _my feet are asleep_

OrangeuGlad: _meet me at the fountain_

Ruby looked at the message for a second before packing her bag and heading out. Whatever Clementine’s plan was she was sure it had something to do with Brody. She always got so stressed out during exam weeks. Ruby walked over towards the fountain where the other girls were waiting. “Hey, so what's the plan?” Ruby looked towards Clementine who rose from her spot on the fountain.

“I think we should buy Brody some snacks and stuff at the convenience store to help her study. I figure it might help.” Clementine looked a round at the others who nodded in agreement. They began to walk over to the convenience store across the street. The small bell rang as they entered. 

“Oh, hey,” Mitch said from behind the cash register.

“Hey, Mitch,” Clementine gave a small smile as the group made their way into the aisles. 

“Is there anything you’re looking for today?” Mitch called out to them.

“We’re just getting some snacks and drinks for Brody to help her feel better,” Ruby replied, grabbing up some different treat options.

“Is she okay?” Mitch's tone took on concern as he leaned over to look at the group. 

“Yeah she’s fine,” Violet said as she took some drinks out.

“Just stressed from studying for exams,” Prisha explained, helping Ruby carry the different items.

“Oh, then you should get this,” Mitch pulled out an item from above the counter and placed it down. It was a small plastic bottle of vitamin C. “Students always get these during exam week. Says it helps them get through a shit ton of studying.”

“Thanks, Mitch,” Clementine smiled as she helped the group place down their order. After a few moments all the items had been scanned and paid for. The girls were making their way to the door when Mitch spoke up again.

“Let me know if that helps,” 

“We will,” Ruby gave a warm smile before the group left the store and were on their way back to Ericson. The girls all smiled at each other. They didn’t have to say anything. They were all thinking the same thing. Mitch totally liked Brody. The group quickly split off, Ruby heading back to her dorm room to deliver the snacks. Clementine opened up Discord again. She could take a few more minutes off before getting back to her studies. 

Sing-us-a-song: _why are feet so cruel  
When they fall asleep? _

OrangeuGlad: _ok i’m back_

Bro: _i_

Sing-us-a-song: _Brody!_

Bro: _my mind is consumed by math_

OrangeuGlad: _you misspelled Mitch ;)_

Sing-us-a-song: _lfkags;kjsbkwekg_

Bro: _bye_

OrangeuGlad: _@RubyRose can you make sure Brody is okay?_

RubyRose: _will do_

\-----

Louis was actually excited for maybe the first time in his life for a study party. Being a hero was demanding so all of them were really hoping to do well on their exams to make up for all the times they had missed class or turned in a late assignment. Ruby and Brody had graciously offered their dorm room and everyone was going to get together and help each other study. When he arrived he was surprised to see he was one of the last ones to show up. Not only that but that there were snacks and tea waiting for him. Throwing down his bag, he sat by Clementine before pulling out his notebook. 

“I figure we can start with philosophy since we could all help each other,” Clementine suggested, to which Violet and Louis immediately agreed. The trio quickly got to work trying to help each other navigate studying. 

“I can help you with statistics,” Aasim offered, taking a sip from his tea. 

Brody had an appreciative expression on her face at his words. “Thanks, I'd really appreciate it.”

The two sat down together talking over formulas that Brody would need to keep in mind for the final. Leaving only Ruby and Prisha left. 

“Would ya mind helping me go over some medical terminology?” Ruby asked, holding out her stack of notecards.

“Not at all, I’d be happy to help. You can quiz me on law terms next.” Prisha took up the notecards as the two made their way to their own study corner to help quiz each other. 

The hours flew by. Soon it was nearing four in the morning. Aasim, Prisha and Violet sat in a circle. Aasim was busy helping Violet get the last few equations for statistics while Prisha read her law textbook, double checking to make sure she wasn’t missing anything important. Louis was busy practicing French with Clementine who didn’t seem to mind helping him at all. 

“It was Freud, wasn’t it?” Brody asked, nervous about her answer. Ruby flipped the card back, a proud smile covering her face. 

“That’s right!” 

“Yes!” Brody exclaimed happily, high fiving Ruby before moving onto the next one. Louis shakily got up, stretching his back.

“I’m gonna do a Starbucks run, figure we’ll be pulling an all nighter.” 

I’ll help.” Clementine offered, standing beside him. “It’s gonna be a lot of drinks.”

Everyone seemed appreciative at the offer, each of them slowly giving him their orders. With that Louis and Clementine left, excited to have some alone time and get away from all the studying. The two talked on the way there and sang along to some of the songs that played on Louis’ playlist until they entered the Starbucks driveway. Clementine helped get the order straight with Louis, repeating her words to the drive thru window. It was a short trip, but they were glad to have it. Gently knocking on the door, they were let back into the room and Louis began to call out the orders.

“Blonde flat white,” Louis picked up the drink and looked around the room.

“That’s my stripper name,” Violet mumbled, causing Prisha to spit take and cover her book in her own drink.

“This is a library book!” Prisha exclaimed, frantically trying to think of a solution while Violet fell face forward, dead asleep. “Aasim, I need your help!” Prisha cried, eyes frantic.

Aasim quickly agreed and the two of them worked on finding a solution as Ruby and Brody helped get Violet up onto one of their beds to sleep. None of them were functioning at one hundred percent, but they decided to carry on with their studying, working into the early hours of the day. 

\-----

Brody played with her friendship bracelet as she walked towards Mitch’s house. This was going to be their last tutoring session before exams. It made her feel a bit sad at the thought. She was going to be happy to be done with the class, but that meant she would be spending less time with Mitch. _It doesn’t have to be that way though._

She paused for a moment at her thought. If she told him how she felt, maybe just maybe he would reciprocate it. Was that such an unbelievable thing to think? Louis and Clementine had gotten together, Ruby and Aasim as well. Hell, even Violet and Prisha had gotten together after all. She really liked Mitch and while she had hoped she could just settle for being friends so she wouldn’t have the chance of getting her feelings hurt, it didn’t seem that simple. These feelings weren’t going away. If anything they were getting stronger as time went on. Taking a deep breath, she felt determination course through her veins. _I’m going to do it. I’ll tell him how I feel as soon as tutoring is done._

With a new resolve burning within her, she strode towards Mitch’s door and gave it a firm knock. Mitch opened the door right away, a small smile playing on his lips when he saw her, causing Brody’s heart to flip inside her chest. 

“Hey Brody, come on in,” He stepped back, giving her space to enter. She gave a short thanks before sitting down and starting on her studying. Time always seemed to move faster when they were together, but today it felt like it was moving faster than ever. Before she knew it their final tutoring session was up.

“Thanks Mitch, for everything. I think I should be able to pass chemistry.”

“You’re gonna kick that exam’s ass!” Mitch said proudly, a smile forming on his lips.

Brody felt her heart quicken. _Come on, Brody, it's now or never._ Taking another deep breath, she went for it.

“Hey, Mitch? I have something I need to tell you,”

Mitch looked over at Brody, curious as to what it might be.

“I really appreciate you and your friendship. It means a lot to me. I like you...” Brody was about to continue when Mitch jumped in.

“I like you too!” 

Brody felt her heart stop at his words. He really felt the same way?

“Your friendship means a lot to me too. Nothing's ever gonna change that!” Mitch grinned, raising up his friendship bracelet and waiting for her to return the gesture.

Brody felt her heart sink in that moment. He didn’t feel the same. She forced a smile and raised her friendship bracelet, hitting it against his. “I should get going,” She stood up abruptly, making a beeline to the door.

“Oh, really?”

“Yeah, I got studying and stuff,” Brody opened the door, stopping when she reached the front steps. “I’ll see you later.”

“Ok,” Mitch’s voice sounded confused by her actions, but Brody couldn’t care. She needed to get out of there. Speedily walking away, she felt tears prick at her eyes. She really was stupid to think that it was anything but friendship. She was so consumed by her thoughts that she hadn’t even realized that she had made it back to campus until she noticed Louis, Ruby and Aasim sitting at a table. Ruby and Aaism were smiling and laughing as they held hands. Ruby glanced up, a happy expression on her face as she waved towards her friend.

“Brody!” She stopped, a concerned expression taking over when she saw Brody’s face. “Brody, what’s wrong?”

Brody thought about hiding away, but seeing how worried all three of her friends were she decided to face it head on. Sitting down beside Louis, she let her head fall onto the table. “I told Mitch I liked him,” She didn’t have to look up to know they all had excited expressions on their faces. “And he said we’d always be friends.” Brody lifted her face up, a few tears escaping her eyes. “It’s my own fault, thanks to this!” She gestured toward the friendship bracelet. “I friendzoned myself…” She placed her face back on the table. “And I didn’t even know it!”

The others were silent for a moment before Louis put a comforting hand on Brody’s shoulder.

“I’m really sorry, Brody.”

Brody felt some more tears run down her face. She felt so stupid. 

“Aw, Sug,” Ruby got up and wrapped Brody in a hug. “It’s going to be okay.”

Brody nodded against Ruby’s shirt. She knew it was going to be okay, but still for now she would have to deal with the pain of rejection. 

\----

Violet felt absolutely exhausted. Exams were really kicking her ass, but hopefully today would be the perfect pick me up. Sophie and Minnie were free today so the three of them had agreed to meet up for a bit. As soon as Violet was in view the twins’ faces immediately brightened up. 

Sophie gave a friendly wave as Violet made her way over. “Hey Violet, sorry we haven’t seen you in a while. The semester has been crazy.”

“It’s been hell,” Minnie took a sip of her coffee. She looked even worse than the last time Violet had seen her. The bags under her eyes had only grown while a dull haze of defeat could be seen in her eyes. Minnie looked exhausted and miserable. 

“But we just gotta kick ass on our exams and then it’s break!” Sophie exclaimed, kicking her feet up on the table as she placed her hands behind her head. “I can’t wait to sleep in and do nothing but hang out and draw. It sounds like heaven.” She looked over at Violet who was in the middle of sipping her tea. “So Vi, got any special plans for winter break? Any with your _girlfriend._ ” 

Violet choked on her tea, coughing as the twins shared a look, a mixture of concern and pride that they had guessed right. “How did you-”

“Come on, Vi, we’ve known you for years now. You’re easy to read,” Minnie shared a smile with her twin.

“Is it the girl we saw last time? The one with the really pretty braid?” Sophie let her feet fall to the ground as she leaned forward.

“Yeah,” Violet felt her face grow hot as she looked away from them. 

“What’s her name?” Minnie also seemed invested in this.

“Prisha,” Violet awkwardly rubbed the back of her neck. 

“That’s a pretty name. You’ve gotta introduce us sometime! We’d love to meet her.” Sophie had an excited smile on her face.

Violet looked at them for a moment, nodding her head before turning her gaze away again.

“What about you, Minnie? Got any plans for winter break?” Violet hoped to take the heat off herself by redirecting the conversation.

“Besides track and field practice not really. Maybe I’ll have time to play some guitar.”

The look on Sophie’s face made it obvious that this had been news to her. “But it’s winter break! Why do you have practice? Honestly, Coach Garcia is pushing you too hard.” Sophie had an annoyed tone to her voice, her eyes filled with concern as she looked over her sister.

“I don’t have a choice, Sophie,” Minnie’s voice grew sharp as she glared at her twin. “I _need_ the scholarship!” 

Sophie froze at those words, a guilty expression on her face as she stared at the table. Violet felt the tension building between the pair as Minnie realized the weight of her words and Sophie refused to look up. 

“So, how's Tenn doing?” Violet asked, causing the twins to glance over at her.

“He’s doing good. He came by the other day and showed us this new art project he was working on!” Sophie’s face instantly changed when she talked about her brother. “I better keep working hard or before I know it he’ll surpass me,” Sophie joked proudly, placing her hands behind her head once more.

“There’s going to be an after-school program here for elementary kids,” Minnie added, her expression softer as she spoke. “He was talking about it nonstop the other day. It was like he could barely contain all of his excitement.” 

“Do you remember the arts program that we went to around his age?” Sophie looked over at Minnie with a nostalgic smile which Minnie mirrored.

“That was one of the best times of our lives. We spent so much time making up songs and drawing,” Minnie’s soft laugh overtook her words at the memories. 

“Tenn’s gonna have so much fun! I can just tell!” Sophie looked back at Violet who had a small smile on her face. She was glad that they had moved on to a happier topic. She knew how much the scholarship weighed on them. The three of them continued their discussion, talking about this and that before it was time to go. Violet stifled a yawn as she made her way towards the gate. She had promised to meet up with Clem and Louis for one final study session. 

Clementine had gotten the front living room all set up with snacks and drinks when she heard a knock on the door. Jumping between the two couches, she ran towards the door. Louis and Violet both smiled when they saw Clementine.

“Hey, Clem! Ready for our last philosophy study session for philosophy?” Louis’ smile seemed to immediately brighten the room as they sat down on the couches.

“Yeah, I think we should be able to all pass it with flying colors.” Clementine opened up her notes.

“I’ll just be glad when it's over,” Violet grumbled, pulling out her worn-out philosophy book.

“We definitely need to take another class together next semester,” Louis declared, tossing a few chips in his mouth. 

“I agree, but we can focus on that after exams,” Clementine motioned towards Louis’ backpack. Louis tossed out his philosophy work and the three began the final study session. The trio didn’t last very long before they needed a break. They were all exhausted. Leaning back into the couch, Clementine let out a tired sigh. Louis and Violet soon followed suit. Clementine stared up at the ceiling. Another hour or so should do it.

She was pulled from her thoughts when she felt a soft thud against her shoulder. Looking over she saw Louis asleep on her shoulder, a look of peace on his face as he slept.

“Louis,” She lifted up her arm to reach over and wake him when she felt her other side get heavy. Her eyes widened in surprise when she saw that Violet had fallen asleep too. The slow rising and falling of her chest was peaceful as she slept. Clementine looked at her two best friends, unsure whether or not to wake them. As she continued to look at their faces, she decided against waking them up. Instead she accepted her own sleepiness and within minutes she’d also fallen asleep. Time slowly moved forward as the trio slept, thankful for a moment’s rest.


	33. The Beauty of Winter

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Winter break is finally here giving everyone a much needed break.

“We’re finally free!” Louis exclaimed, shooting his arms up in the air as a look of pure bliss overtook his face. 

Violet tried to stifle a yawn as she walked with the other two. “Exam week was hell,” she grumbled, kicking a pebble out of her way. 

“But at least no rifts opened up,” Clementine let out a long sigh, her body exhausted from the crazy week.

“I totally forgot about that!” Louis’ eyes widened in realization before his usual warm smile reappeared on his face. 

“We got lucky,” Violet mumbled, looking over at her two best friends.

“That’s true, but...” Louis lifted up a finger, “Now we can focus on winter break and enjoy every minute of it. Like building a snowman!”

“And snowball fights,” Clementine added, swaying her hand that was holding Louis’.

“Hot cocoa,” a faint smile appeared on Violet’s face at the thought. 

“This is gonna be the best winter break ever!” Louis’ face practically beamed with excitement so much so that the other two couldn’t help but smile as well. 

Violet sat on the floor in front of her bag that had clothes and other items haphazardly thrown into it. She never was a big fan of packing so she decided to take a quick break to check Discord. She checked Persona Pals first. 

OrangeuGlad: _even though it’s break be prepared for any rifts_

Sing-us-a-song: _I’m always prepared_

Bro: _I’ll be sure to be ready_

Sing-us-a-song: _they call me mr. Prep_

Aasim: _As will I._

Sing-us-a-song: _as in prepare  
not the other prep _

RubyRose: _I’ll come running as soon as the message comes in_

Knife2MeetU: _is it really okay that I’ll be gone_

OrangeuGlad: _We’ll be down a member but we’ll be fine_

Sing-us-a-song: _yeah Vi  
enjoy your getaway with Prisha _

Bro: _with me and Ruby we’ll be sure to help the others_

Sing-us-a-song: _romantic getaway <3 _

Knife2MeetU: _Louis  
Shut  
Okay be safe _

Before Violet could wait to see if anyone else responded she noticed that something else was happening in the other server. The alert kept popping up signaling that someone had added to the chat. Moving over to Team Fun, she opened the channel where the notifications were coming from. 

Sing-us-song: _So I declare that on December 31 we all get together to have a party  
You and Violet will be back then Prisho _

PrishaFacie: _We will_

Sing-us-a-song: _*Prisha  
Awesome!!!   
Clem can we have it at your house _

OrangeuGlad: _I’ll check_

Sing-us-a-song: _it should be a sleepover!  
I’ll bring my switch  
Just dance   
Pizza _

Bro: _This sounds like a lot of fun_

Sing-us-a-song: _we’ll merge christmas and new years together  
The ultimate party! _

OrangeuGlad: _Lee said it’s okay_

Sing-us-a-song: _olay everyone brings some snacks and drinks_

RubyRose: _I can’t wait!  
I can’t remember the last time i had a hootenanny _

Aasim: _hootenanny?_

RubyRose: _It means a party_

Sing-us-a-song: _Yes the ultimate hootenanny!_

Violet closed Discord and looked back at the pile of items that still needed to be packed. Willing herself to get up she continued to pack, a bubble of excitement welling up in her at the thought of a short winter road trip with Prisha. 

\------

Clementine had really gotten her hopes up. She had wanted to surprise Louis with a winter date but it looked like fate had other plans and had favored another couple. Lee had told Clementine the other night that he had a date with Carley and that she needed to stay back to watch AJ. Waking up that morning, she slowly ate breakfast, unsure what the day held for her and her brother. 

“Well I should be going,” Lee shuffled on his black coat, wrapping a scarf around himself to shield from the cold weather. 

“Have fun!” AJ replied through slurps of his cereal.

“AJ,” Clementine scolded lightly before looking at her dad. “Have a good date,” 

“Thanks,” He put on his gloves, pausing for a moment as he opened the door. “You know, Clem, if you want Louis can always come over here.”

Clementine stopped eating, feeling a mixture of happiness and stupidity at the fact that she hadn’t thought of that. Giving one final wave to his kids, Lee headed out for his fun winter date. Quickly Clementine took out her phone, sending a text to Louis asking if he wanted to come over today. He responded almost immediately telling Clementine that he was on his way. Clementine’s smile grew at those words before she noticed that she was still in her Donald Duck PJs. 

Scrambling up the stairs, she threw on some clothes and placed the piano key necklace gently around her neck. With a fast look in the mirror she made her way back to AJ who seemed to still be occupied with his breakfast. Clementine waited nervously, tapping her foot as she watched the minutes slowly pass by when she heard a knock come from the door. Jumping up to her feet and nearly slipping, she pulled open the door revealing Louis in all of his freckled glory. 

“Hey, Clem!” He walked in, planting a quick kiss on her cheek. “So what’s the plan today?”

“Louis!” AJ ran over to greet him with a huge grin on his face.

“Hey, little man!” Louis gave a small wave towards him.

“So what are we doing today?” AJ looked over at Clementine, his excitement radiating from his body. 

“Well, I thought it could be fun to go outside and make a snowman,” Clementine looked over to see the other two’s faces light up at her suggestion. Without a second to lose, the three of them got prepared to face the cold weather. Everyone was bundled up in their coats, scarfs and gloves, waddling outside to start on their masterpiece. AJ quickly formed the three snowballs and gave them out to Clem and Louis who accepted them and began work on their part of the project immediately. Soon the snowballs had been formed into the three sections on the snowman. Louis helped AJ roll the bottom part, gathering as much snow as they could until they stopped in place. Next Clementine and AJ placed the middle section before Louis and Clementine placed the highest part. Dividing up the different parts of the snowman, they began to assemble him. Clementine stuck the wooden arms in deeply, securing them in place while her brother placed different rocks as buttons. Louis carefully placed the two eyes.

“Hey little dude, wanna place the finishing touch?” Louis asked, holding out the carrot nose. AJ’s eyes danced with excitement.

“Yes!” He snatched the carrot and with the help of Louis put the nose in place.

“Well I’d say we did a pretty good job,” Louis nodded proudly at their creation.

“I think it’s the best snowman we’ve built yet!” Clementine smiled warmly at her boyfriend.

“The best snowman ever!” AJ yelled happily at the other two.

“So what’s next, my lady?” Louis asked with a playful smile on his face. 

“Hmmm,” Clementine placed her hand on her chin. “How about snow angels?”

“Yes!” AJ jumped up and down before sprinting off to claim the best spot and start on his angel. The pair followed closely behind, finding their own spots and starting on their angels. The three of them laughed as they moved their arms and legs back and forth. After a few minutes they got up and looked at their angels with proud smiles on their faces.

“What’s next?” Louis asked, glancing over at his girlfriend. 

“Hot chocolate! Please!” AJ begged, giving his best puppy dog eyes. 

“That does sound nice,” Clementine smiled back at her brother.

“Then onward to chocolatey goodness!” Louis dramatically pointed his finger as AJ sprinted inside while Clementine and Louis walked back inside hand in hand. As Louis and AJ worked on the hot chocolate, Clementine was struck by a realization of something she had totally forgotten to show Louis the last time he was here. 

“Hey Louis, could you follow me?” Clementine’s question made Louis look up from his sip of hot cocoa. 

“Sure,” He followed his girlfriend into another room where there standing in the left corner of the room was a piano. His eyes shone as he stared at the piano. Sliding onto the piano bench, he glanced back at the other two.

“Are you down for some Christmas carols?” His smile grew when he saw the expressions on the others’ faces.

“I’m always down for some Christmas carols.” Clementine replied, taking a sip from her hot cocoa. With that Louis began “Jingle Bells”. The lively tune filled the room as all three of them sang along. 

“What would you like next?” He looked back at AJ.

“Santa Claus is Coming to Town!”

“You got it, buddy!” Louis stretched out his fingers before dancing them across the piano keys, creating a beautiful tune. The three of them continued to sing song after song, enjoying the fun that came from it until AJ eventually grew bored and headed upstairs, leaving Clementine and Louis. Clementine immediately walked over to the piano, sitting beside her boyfriend who had started up another song. 

“Oh, the weather outside is frightful, but the fire is so delightful... and since we've no place to go,  
let it snow, let it snow, let it snow.” Louis’ warm voice filled the room as he looked over at Clementine. 

She smiled and soon joined in the song. “It doesn't show signs of stopping and I've brought some corn for popping.The lights are turned way down low, let it snow, let it snow, let it snow.” The couple continued to sing the song until the music suddenly stopped, the two staring at each with loving smiles. Clementine leaned forward, capturing Louis’ lips in a slow, passionate kiss. Louis seemed to melt into the kiss, leaning into it before they pulled away. 

“Holy shit,” He whispered, smiling at Clementine who returned the smile. 

Their attention was drawn away from each other when they heard a giggle coming from the doorway. Looking over, they saw AJ standing there. “What are you doing?”

“You’ll learn when you’re older,” Louis replied with a smile.

“Just go back to the hot cocoa,” Clementine looked away from her brother, embarrassed that he saw her kissing Louis. 

“Okay,” He paused before leaving. “Oh, and you sweared.” he pointed out to Louis whose eyes widened. 

“Right!” He took out a dollar and gave it to AJ who accepted it happily. Within seconds AJ was gone and the two turned their attention back to each other, glad to finally have a moment alone together again. After a while Louis had to leave, planting a quick kiss on Clem’s lips before disappearing onto the snow-covered road. Clementine closed the door, her face refusing to stop smiling. It had been a great winter date. 

\-----

Ruby felt her nerves slowly build inside her as she double checked that she was properly dressed for the cold weather outside. A knock on her dorm room caused her to look up from her task of putting on her mittens. Walking over, she opened the door to see Aasim standing there holding two bouquets of flowers. His face immediately brightened when he saw her. 

“Hi, Ruby,” He shuffled the bouquets and book in his arms. “You ready to go?”

“Hi, Aasim. Yeah, I’m ready,” she closed the door behind her, sweeping Aasim’s free hand into hers, causing Aasim to lightly blush as he smiled at her. The two made their way outside campus and towards Ruby’s minivan. Ruby’s free hand dug around in her pocket, revealing a set of old car keys. With a quick button press the van was unlocked and the pair was on their way to the destination: Richmond Memorial Hospital. Ruby wasn’t sure how her boyfriend would react when she asked him to come with her to visit Ms. Martin in the hospital. They had only been dating for a couple weeks. But he had agreed. Ruby looked over at him when she had stopped at a red light. She really was grateful that he had agreed.

“You doing okay?” Aasim looked at her while she continued to drive down the street. “I know it can’t be easy.” She felt her heart sting slightly at his concern but she forced a warm smile on her face.

“There’s no need to worry. I’m fine.” Aasim didn’t seem fully convinced by her statement but he didn’t push her. Instead when she had stopped at another light he reached for her hand, giving it a gentle squeeze. 

“I’m here.” His words caused her to get a bit teary eyed but by then they were at the hospital. Pulling into a parking spot, the pair made their way inside and asked the receptionist for the room number. The pair walked in silence, their hands slowly swaying as they walked. Ruby felt her heart race and tighten at the same time. It still felt so surreal; Ms. Martin had cancer. Taking a deep breath, Ruby opened the door and was greeted with a kind smile.

“Ruby,” Ms. Martin’s face seemed to gleam when she saw Ruby. “How sweet of you to visit.”

“Aww, Ms. Martin, of course I’d visit.” Ruby replied, making her way into the room with Aasim.

“Oh, and who is this handsome fellow?” Ms. Martin gave Ruby a teasing smile which caused both her and Aasim to blush. 

“This is Aasim, my boyfriend. Aasim this is Ms. Martin.”

“It’s nice to meet you,” He awkwardly held out one of the bouquets. It was a lovely arrangement of deep red peonies and daisies. “ These are for you,”

He made his way over to place them in the vase that was at her bedside.

“Oh my, that’s very thoughtful of you.” Ms. Martin’s warm smile caused Ruby's heart ache once again. 

Aasim stood beside Ruby. “I need to drop these off. I should only be gone for a little while. Is that okay?” He looked with concern at Ruby whose expression was warm and cheerful.

“That’s okay, I’ll see you soon.”

Aasim gave a small nod before excusing himself, taking with him the book and bouquet of sunflowers. Ruby knew that he was visiting Sarah; everyone in the group had let Ruby know of what had happened. She thought it was very sweet how they all continued to visit her. _I should probably visit sometime too._

She was pulled from her thoughts when she felt a hand wrap around hers. Looking down, she was met with Ms. Martin’s kind eyes.

“You chose well,” Ruby felt her face heat up at Ms. Martin’s words before a gentle smile covered her face. 

“Aasim is great. We’ve only been together for a short while, but he’s kind and gentle. Real supportive too.”

“I can tell,” Ms. Martin shifted in her bed. “So tell me, Ruby, how’s life going for you?”

Ruby pulled forward a seat and sat down. “It’s been good. My friends and I are going to have this huge hootenanny on the 31st! It’s gonna be awesome!” Ruby’s face brightened at her own words. “Also Brody and are going to have a sleepover tomorrow which will be great and-” she was cut off when she noticed the look of pain on Ms. Martin’s face. “Ms. Martin, are you okay? Should I call for a nurse?” Ruby rose, ready to get help if need be.

“I’m fine, Ruby.” She noticed that Ruby wasn’t convinced. “I promise.” 

Ruby slowly sat back down again. Her thoughts slowly consumed her mind. She still wasn’t one hundred percent sure about all the persona stuff, but she knew one thing: she could heal injuries. Things that shouldn’t be possible now became possible all with a simple command from her. If she could heal Brody’s bruised and bloodied hands, maybe just maybe it would work for other types of damage to the human body. _Could I heal Ms. Martin?_ Was it possible? The team had only spoken of cuts and such, but still was there a chance? They said their powers didn’t work outside of sanctums so that would mean she would have to find one. But how could she get Ms. Martin in there? She wouldn’t go and besides was it really okay to use a sanctum for her own needs? Even if they weren’t selfish... Ruby froze in her thoughts. _Are they selfish?_ The team went into sanctums to save people so if she could save Ms Martin would it be wrong to use one? She was pulled from her thoughts when she felt a hand on her arm.

“Ruby, I don’t want you to worry about me.” Ruby was shocked by the words. Ms. Martin seems to pick up on this fairly quickly, giving a reassuring smile. “I can fight this.”

Ruby felt tears roll down her face, hot against her skin. Reaching up, she brushed them away furiously. “I know, Ms. Martin, you’re a fighter! You’ll get through this!” 

Ms. Martin seemed to relax at those words. “Now let’s move on to happier topics, like do you have any special plans with Aasim?”

The topic turned happier at that point. Ruby gushed about all the different plans that she was hoping her and Aasim could do over the winter break. Walking down a snow-covered lane holding hands, watching Christmas movies together, cuddling and drinking apple cider. Ms. Martin’s expression grew happier at the news when suddenly there was a knock at the door. Aasim opened the door and made his way over to Ruby, taking a seat beside her. 

“Sorry that took a little longer than expected.” He gave an apologetic look towards Ruby.

“Are you visiting someone else here?” 

Aasim looked over at Ms. Martin when she asked the question. “Yes,” His expression turned somber. “Someone who’s in a coma and there isn’t really any news on whether she’ll ever wake up or not. My friends and I visit her in hopes that it will help her, even if it just gives her some peace during this time.” 

“That’s very kind of you,”

“It’s the least I could do, really.”

The three continued onto other topics as time slipped by. Before they knew it it was time for the couple to head out. 

“It was really nice to meet you,” Aasim gave a kindhearted smile towards Ms. Martin.

“It was nice meeting you too, Aasim,” Ms. Martin shifted in her bed slightly before locking eyes with him. “You better treat Ruby right. Don’t go breaking her heart.”

“Ms. Martin!” Ruby’s rosy cheeks grew redder at those words.

“I promise,” Aasim met her gaze evenly with a determined and sincere look in his eyes.

“I’m glad to hear it. I’m sure I’ll be seeing you two again soon.”

With that the couple said their goodbyes before walking back to the minivan. 

Aasim paused for a moment. “Ruby, would it be okay if I drove us? I have a spot I’d like to show you,” 

Ruby looked surprised for a second. Handing the car keys over, she took her place in the seat beside his. After a few minutes they had arrived at a street where trees were covered from top to bottom in Christmas lights. 

Getting out of the car, Aasim jogged over and opened the door for Ruby, offering her his hand. “I thought it would be nice to go for a walk together to clear our heads and enjoy the beauty of winter,” He gestured towards the street in front of them. “I figured this place would be a nice place to spend some time together,” 

“It’s perfect,” Ruby’s heart melted at her boyfriend’s thoughtfulness. Locking the car, the two slowly walked down the street together hand in hand. Enjoying the peace and quiet that winter brought, the pair talked casually as they strolled down the road. 

“I’ll be right back,” Aasim whispered and before Ruby could say anything he was gone, soon returning with two warm cups of apple cider. “Thought a warm drink would help,” He handed her the drink with a gentle expression.

“That would be lovely,” Ruby accepted the drink, taking a sip of it. She stopped when she noticed a snowflake fall into it. Looking, she noticed that it was lightly snowing, the snowflakes gently falling around them. She looked over at Aasim who seemed to be caught up in the wonder of seeing the snowflakes, letting them fall into the palm of his hands. His hair slowly began to get covered in them. He suddenly looked over at her, the two locking eyes. Taking a step forward, Ruby placed a gentle kiss on his cheek which caused him to blush as his mind tried to process what had just happened. The two continued on their walk as the snow filled their view. Soon they were at the end of the street and without any warning Aasim leaned forward and placed a kiss on her cheek. An overwhelmed expression stayed on his face from getting up the courage to do it. Ruby was sure her cheeks were bright red right about now.

“Shall we head back?” Aasim asked.

“Yeah, let’s head back,” Ruby’s expression caused Aasim to mirror it. The couple made their way back to the van, happy for a beautiful winter moment.


	34. A Snow Kissed Moment

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Mitch realizes his mistake and decides to follow his heart. While Prisha and Violet enjoy a short getaway.

So far winter break was going well. Brody had been able to hang out and have a sleepover with Ruby and soon she, Ruby and Clementine would get together as well. Not to mention the party on the 31st which was sure to be loads of fun. So why was she still feeling down? A quick glance towards her phone gave the answer away. There was her phone ready to send a message to Mitch if she wanted, but she didn’t know what to say. 

She didn’t want the next time they were hanging out together to be awkward, but after her flop of a confession she had a feeling that no matter how hard she tried it would be. Still winter break would be better if she spent some time with him, right? She fell back onto her bed with a groan. _This is stupid. Come on, Brody._ She willed herself to grab the phone but quickly tossed it aside. Maybe she would send him a text later. For now she had other things to focus on. 

\----

“Oh no! Please!” Louis pleaded as the tiny pink blob that was Kirby tried desperately to float back to the stage only to be kicked in the face by Samus.

“Marlon!” Louis flopped backwards onto the floor with a defeated sigh. 

“Sorry Lou,” Marlon gave his friend a quick, apologetic smile that was instantly replaced with a competitive one when he turned his attention back to the game. All he needed to do was knock off another life from Mitch and then he had a chance. A slim one but a chance nonetheless. Aiming his beam towards Snake, he shot it hoping to connect only for Snake to slip by and knock him off the stage. Marlon tossed the Switch controller.

“Sorry,” Mitch’s expression seemed to betray his words as he looked smugly at his two friends. “But I did warn you I’d kick your asses!”

“Maybe, but next round you won’t be so lucky!” Louis shot back up, selecting the pink fighter once more. The other two soon selected their own fighters when Mitch’s gaze fell towards his phone that laid by his side.

“You ready, Mitch?” Marlon asked, glancing over at his friend.

“Yeah.” Mitch slammed his thumb down on the select button, choosing Hyrule castle as their battleground to fight to the death. 

“You sure?” Louis’ words caused Mitch to pause for a moment, letting Marlon get a free hit which made Marlon stop his fighting as well.

“It’s nothing,” Mitch pushed forward, whacking Kirby’s feet which sent him flying up into the sky. Louis and Marlon shared a look before returning to the game. Mitch was stubborn so they doubted they could get him to spill so easily. Suddenly Mitch’s phone dinged, making Mitch put down the controller to check it only to toss it to the floor when he wasn’t happy with the result.

“Waiting for a response?” Louis asked only to be met with a glare.

Mitch looked away at the screen before answering. “Brody hasn’t been returning my texts. She’s been acting weird ever since our last tutoring meeting.” He snatched up his controller, pushing his fingers forcefully on the buttons in hope of getting in stronger attacks. 

“What happened during that?” Marlon asked as he tried to block some of the upcoming attacks. 

“Nothing. She just told me that she really valued our friendship and that she liked me. So I told her that I liked her too and nothing would ever change our friendship,” Mitch stopped his button mashing when he saw his friends’ expressions. “What?”

“She said she liked you,” Marlon leaned forward, “And you said you liked her too?”

“Yeah,”

“And then you told her that your friendship would never change?” 

“Yeah, because what else was I supposed to say?”

“You’re such a dumbass,” Marlon let out a light-hearted laugh.

Mitch seemed to take offense at those words, his eyes narrowing as he looked back at him. “What does that mean?”

“Dude, she was totally confessing her feelings to you.” Louis shook his head. “Poor Brody,”

Mitch’s eyes widened in shock. “No way! She just told me that she liked me as a friend,” Mitch’s words caused Louis and Marlon to share another look. “There’s no way she’d like me.” Is there? Mitch felt his heart race at the thought. He shook his head; he couldn’t get his hopes up.

“Sounds like a confession to me,” Marlon gave a shrug as he leaned back on his arms. 

“So how do you feel about Brody?” The teasing expression on Louis’ face made Mitch want to snap back but he was too caught up in the question.

“I-” he suddenly rose to his feet. “There’s something I need to do. We’ll play Smash Bros some other time,” He haphazardly gathered Louis’ Switch, handing it to him before escorting his friends out. They seemed to have a mixture of confusion and smugness on their faces as they left. Mitch shut the door behind him. 

He knew how he felt about Brody, the feelings that were swirling around in his heart. Louis and Marlon had to be pulling his leg though, right? She couldn’t really feel the same way. He froze when the memory of that day came back to him: the shy look on her face as she spoke and the sadness in her tone the moment that she left. She wasn’t returning his texts because… _She likes me._ Mitch felt his face heat up slightly at the thought, a small smile playing on his lips, disappearing in a second when the realization hit him. _If she did like me, then I totally fucked it up._ He let his head hit the front door. There was no chance now, unless… He swung open the door, a newfound determination burning deep within his eyes. 

“Willy! I’ll be out for a bit!” He didn’t bother to wait to hear his brother’s reply. He sprinted down the driveway as his hand fumbled for the car keys. There was still a chance. Maybe if he told her how he felt then maybe, just maybe... The thought fueled the adrenaline in his body as he started the old, beat-up car. Luckily for him his dad had taken the day off which meant he could use the car. Pulling out of the driveway he drove down the street, trying to recall the one time that he had been to Brody’s house. It was a little ways from his place, but he didn’t care. 

When he finally reached it, Mitch stopped his car with a screeching halt, jumping out and slipping as he locked the car. His eyes searched for her house, the vague memory of its design dulled further by the dimness of the street lights that lit the road. The darkness of the evening crept in more and more as he searched. He had almost given up hope when he saw the house. Sprinting forward and slipping once again, he stopped in front of it. He took a deep breath, summoning all the courage that he could muster, hoping to match Brody’s courage on the day that she confessed to him. 

“BRODY!” He cupped his hands around his mouth. “I LIKE YOU!” 

His heart felt like it was about to burst as he nervously waited for a response from the house. It never came. He felt his heart drop as his head fell. Of course she didn’t feel the same way. Even if she had, he had messed it up. _You really are a dumbass!_ Mitch felt like kicking his past self for his stupidity. There was nothing left to do but go back home and move on. The hope of requited feelings slowly faded away until he heard a familiar voice.

“Mitch?” Brody’s voice came from behind him, making him look and see that she was standing at the doorway of the door across the street. He had gotten the houses mixed up. He felt a wave of embarrassment wash over him at the revelation and more so that Brody had heard it.

“Did...” Brody’s voice took on a soft tone. “Did I hear you right?”

Her words caused his heartbeat to quicken again.

_Now or never._

“Yes,” He felt the dryness of his mouth at the sound of his own words. “I like you, Brody, as in more than a friend. Although I still value our friendship,” He raised his friendship bracelet awkwardly. Brody’s face was bright red, from his words or the cold he wasn’t sure.

“I like you too, Mitch,” 

Mitch felt his heart soar at those words. _Holy shit, they were right._ An unusually bright warmth filled his heart as Brody walked over to him with a happy smile on her face when all of the sudden he let out a loud sneeze, startling her. 

“Oh! You didn’t bring a jacket! We have to get you inside.” Brody grabbed his hand which caused his heart to flip. He had been so focused on getting to her house that it had completely slipped his mind to put on a coat. He looked at Brody, a warm smile pulling on his lips. 

\----

Brody felt her heartbeat pounding in her ears as she guided Mitch into her house and offered him a place on the couch. “Sit there, I’ll be back in a minute,” She ran down the hall, sliding on the hardwood floor thanks to her socks as she made her way to the small wooden cabinet where the blankets were stored. Pushing past a few options, she grabbed what she always considered the warmest and softest blanket. She began to make her way back when she paused. _What if it smells bad?_  
She lifted the blanket up to her nose and was pleasantly surprised to discover that it was fine. Making her way back to the living room, she threw the blanket onto Mitch who was finally being hit with the effects of going out in winter in a t-shirt.

“Thanks,” His teeth chattered slightly as he gave an appreciative smile. 

“I’ll make us some cocoa!” Brody slipped into the kitchen for a few minutes before returning with two steaming mugs of hot cocoa. Mitch accepted the cat mug gratefully, taking a long sip from it. 

“Oh, if you want we could watch a movie while you warm up,” 

Mitch’s eyes seemed excited at Brody’s suggestion. “Sure, let me just let my family know,” Mitch pulled out his phone, sending a quick text while Brody set up a Christmas movie. As Brody looked back at the couch, she wondered how close she should sit next to Mitch. He had just confessed to her which meant that their attraction was mutual, but still... Brody decided to sit somewhat close to him as she pushed the play button, starting up _A Christmas Story._

“You can have some of the blanket if you want,” Mitch offered in a whisper as he leaned over, lifting up the edge of the blanket. Brody looked over at him in surprise then nodded. “Thanks,”

The two watched the movie in silence for a few minutes before starting to comment on their memories of watching the movie when they were younger. 

“You know, when I was younger I wanted to see how bad soap tasted if I put a bar in my mouth,” Mitch’s voice caused Brody to look over at him. “It was so fucking bad that I swore I would never misbehave again, “ He gave a smirk, “But it didn’t last that long.”

“You put a bar of soap in your mouth?” Brody’s eyes widened.

“Yeah, come on, weren’t you ever curious?”

“I guess… whenever I watched this movie when I was younger I was always worried about shooting my eye out. In fact, one time Ruby had told me that she was going on a hunting trip with her dad and brothers and I started to cry begging her not to go,” Brody gave a shy smile at her own memories. “ I was really worried she’d end up shooting her eye out.”

Mitch laughed goodnaturedly at Brody’s tale. 

“It was serious,”

“I know I know,” he gave an apologetic look before the pair turned their attention back to the movie. Brody had slowly over the course of the movie moved closer to Mitch, hoping it would be okay with him. She looked over at him for a moment, taking in the happy expression on his face which caused Brody’s heart to race. _I shouldn’t stare._ Her eyes focused back on the scene on the TV when suddenly she felt Mitch’s hand brush against hers. Her mind spun as she tried to process what had just happened. She couldn’t be sure if it was intentional or not, but she decided to risk it and reached out her hand towards his. She felt his hand flinch for a moment before opening up to accept hers, covering it with warmth. The two looked at each other, each with shy smiles on their face. Brody couldn’t believe that this moment was real, but she hoped that it would never end.

\------

Clementine felt the stiffness in her neck as she stretched, reaching up a hand to rub the side of it.

“You okay?” Ruby’s concerned tone made Clementine stop and look over at her two friends who sat on the floor in her room surrounded by snacks. 

“Yeah, I’m fine,” Clementine plopped down in her spot, reaching over to the cards that were laid by her hip. “So, what game do you want to play?”

“We could play BS?” Brody offered, leaning forward “I’ll probably lose though.”

“I’m down for it,” Ruby added.

“Alright, BS it is.” Clementine shuffled the cards in her hands before dealing the appropriate amount. The first few rounds didn’t last long. Brody had been right that she wouldn’t win. She ended up being one of the easiest to read when Ruby or Clementine studied her face long enough. Clementine and Ruby were fairly matched at it though, both coming up at two wins each when Clementine began to shuffle the cards once again. 

“So, anything interesting happen for you two so far during winter break?” Ruby started up the small talk. 

Clementine paused in her shuffling, a small smile forming on her face. “Louis and I had a really nice date. We ended up playing in the snow building a snowman, singing and...” Clementine looked away, a bit embarrassed for a moment before finishing her sentence. “Kissing.”

Brody and Ruby shared an excited look before turning to their friend. “Sounds like quite the date.”

“What about you, Ruby?” Clementine began to deal the cards.

Ruby replied first. “Aasim and I went to visit Ms. Martin,” 

“How’s she doing?” Brody asked with a worried expression on her face.

“She’s doing good. She’s a fighter,” Ruby tried to give a smile though her eyes shone with sadness. “But then Aasim surprised me and we went down this street with the most beautiful lights covering the trees. It was magical.” The warm expression on her   
face caused her friends to smile as well. Ruby’s eyes widened at the thought that Brody might be feeling left out of the current conversation. “Oh, shoot,” 

“What? What’s wrong?” Clementine asked.

Ruby waved a hand at Clementine’s concerned tone. “Aww, Sug, sorry. I didn’t mean to worry you. It’s just maybe we should change the subject since..”

“Since Mitch,” Brody filled in the blanks. “Well, actually there is something I need to tell you two. Mitch came over to my house the other night and told me he liked me,” Brody’s face had taken on a light blush as Clem and Ruby’s expressions changed to shock.

“What?”

“What happened?”

Brody smiled at her two friends’ enthusiasm.

“Well, he ended up yelling at my neighbor’s house when he confessed, but then it was really sweet. We just watched a movie together and drank hot cocoa and…” Brody lifted up her hand and played with a strand our her hair. “We even held hands.”

“That’s great, Brody!” Clementine exclaimed happily.

“I knew he liked you!” Ruby added with a smile.

“Anyway, we should start this game.” 

Clementine and Ruby seemed a bit upset by Brody’s suggestion.

“Then we can talk more.” Brody assured them.

“Speaking of couples, I wonder how Vi and Prisha’s trip is going,” Ruby placed down three cards in the center. “Three aces.”

“Bullshit!” Clementine claimed smugly as she flipped the cards over, her smirk growing as she revealed two twos and an eight. “Nice try, Ruby, but you can't distract us with small talk.” 

Clementine reorganized her cards, pausing for a moment as she also wondered how the trip was going. 

\-----

Prisha felt a giddy excitement course through her as she watched the scenery fly by from her seat. It was hard to believe that this was really happening. She was going on a trip with her girlfriend. Her eyes wandered over to Violet who was concentrating on the road as she drove them closer and closer to their destination. A sudden thought crossed her mind as she looked towards Violet. “Violet?”

“Hmmm,” 

“I was just wondering if maybe this was too much,” Prisha brushed away a strand of hair behind her ear. “Asking you on this trip.”

Violet glanced over at Prisha before returning her gaze back on the road. “No, it’s fine. I’m happy that you asked me,” 

Prisha felt her heart swell at Violet’s words, the feeling heightening when Violet looked over at her with a warm smile. Prisha returned the smile as she leaned back in her seat.

“It shouldn’t be too much longer till we get there,” Violet commented, switching over a lane. 

“I can’t wait,” Prisha looked over at Violet once again, caught by her beauty. The way her hair swayed ever so gently as she drove, the excitement dancing in her green eyes. Prisha really couldn’t believe that this was real. 

The pair continued their conversation, talking about what they were looking forward to on their trip as time flew by. Before they knew it they were there.

“Wanna stop to grab some food?” Violet looked over at Prisha who nodded with a yawn.

“That sounds nice.”

Violet slowly pulled the pickup truck into a nearby diner. Getting out of the truck, the two made their way inside and ordered some breakfast food. As far as food went it wasn’t that bad. The pancakes were devoured within minutes. Prisha and Violet got caught up in conversation, not paying attention to the time when they realized how late it was. Neither of them had much money to spend so all they could afford for the night was a motel room. After getting the key from the front desk, they made their way to room 3. Both of them were shocked when they opened the door. There standing in the middle of the room was one single bed. Prisha felt her nervousness rise as she glanced over at Violet who seemed flustered by the situation. 

“So…” Prisha began, unsure what to say. It wouldn’t be too awkward to share a bed, would it? Before she could continue her sentence, Violet walked forward, dropping her bag by the wall as she laid down on the floor. 

“I’ll take the floor.” Violet mumbled, curling up as she tried to find a comfortable position.

Prisha made her way over to the bed, placing her own bag beside it. Slowly she sat down, trying to come up with the right sentence. “Violet, there’s no need for you to sleep on the floor,” Prisha offered, her own heart racing as she tried to process the fact that there was only one bed here. 

“It’s fine, I’m already asleep,” Violet mumbled from the floor.

“Well that’s obviously not true,” Prisha sat on the bed, staring down at her girlfriend. “Come on, Vi, it’s fine. It’s not like we’re going to do anything.” Violet visibly flinched at Prisha’s words, causing Prisha to wince at her poor wording.

“That came out wrong. Just come up here.” Prisha waited as Violet considered her offer for a moment. Slowly Violet got up and made her way to her bag. 

“I’m gonna get changed first,” Violet pointed towards the bathroom and disappeared without another word. Prisha waited in the awkward silence, unsure what she could really do besides wait for Violet to come back. After a few minutes Violet reemerged from the bathroom dressed in a cute, worn-out purple shirt with a baby chick on it and some sweatpants. She quietly put her toothbrush away before making her way to the bed and awkwardly sitting next to Prisha. 

“I’ll be a minute,” Prisha grabbed her own PJs,a teal tank top and navy blue pajama pants and toothbrush. As she brushed her teeth she could hear her heart pounding within her ears. When they had gotten a motel room they had expected two beds, not this. Not that she was complaining, but it also felt awkward. Giving herself a minute to take a deep breath, Prisha made her way back to the bed where Violet was already under the covers on the far left side. Prisha made her way over to the right side of the bed, making sure there was a good amount of space between them. 

The two laid down, their heads facing each other as they rested on the pillows. Slowly Prisha reached out her hand, wrapping her pinky around Violet’s who immediately returned the gesture, intertwining their fingers. Their joint hands laid up by their faces. Prisha could tell that Violet was just as nervous as she was so she decided it might be best to start up a conversation. 

“There’s been something I’ve been meaning to ask you,” Prisha started and noticed the curious expression on her girlfriend’s face “Do you remember the first time that you realized you liked me?” Violet seemed shocked and flustered by the question. “Because I remember the moment that I knew I was starting to develop feelings for you,” Prisha whispered. “It was when you stood up for me when that college student was yelling at me by the help center. I remember thinking that I had misjudged you and that you were a strong and caring person. After that point, my feelings only continued to grow as I spent time with you.” 

Violet’s eyes widened in shock as her face took on a slight blush. “Oh, well I don’t really have a moment I could pinpoint like you can. I think it started during those days you helped me with my philosophy book. I just remember that I got more and more excited to spend that time with you. Y’ know, hear your thoughts and share mine,” Violet’s free hand awkwardly rubbed the back of her neck. “Before I had even really realized it I had already started to like you. Just took me a while to figure it out.” 

Prisha felt her smile grow at Violet’s words, a comforting, exciting warmth filling her heart as she looked at her. Prisha was about to respond when a yawn overtook her words. 

“We should probably go to sleep,” Violet whispered, reaching over to turn off the side lights. Soon the room was surrounded by darkness. 

“Night, Prisha,”

“Goodnight, Violet,”

The room was silent. The only sensation left was the feeling of Violet’s hand in hers as Prisha felt sleep overtake her.

\------

Violet felt a comforting warmth around her as the sleep slowly left her eyes. She had been so nervous about not being able to fall asleep last night since she was sleeping in the same bed as Prisha. But then within a matter of minutes she had been out. Her eyes adjusted and she felt her heart skip a beat. Prisha’s face was right beside hers, the rhythmic breathing causing her chest to slowly rise and fall. Violet shifted her legs and was shocked to discover that she had intertwined them with Prisha’s. Violet felt her heart pounding in her chest like a drum. Somehow over the course of the night she had moved closer to Prisha and curled her body towards her. She could barely process what had happened when Prisha suddenly shifted in her sleep, causing Violet to move back slightly. 

It only took a few moments for Prisha to wake and notice that they had moved closer in their sleep. She gave a warm, nervous smile towards Violet. “Good morning,” she whispered.

“Good morning.” Violet’s voice cracked a bit towards the end. The two stared at each other for a minute before Prisha leaned forward and captured Violet’s lips in a slow, gentle kiss. Violet’s eyes widened for a second before softening as she fell into the kiss. When they pulled away, Prisha looked shy.

“Sorry, was that too much?”

“No, I liked it,” Violet was as surprised as Prisha by her own words. Gently, Violet rubbed her thumb against Prisha’s, enjoying the moment. The couple stayed there for a few more minutes enjoying each other’s company.

“We should go,” Violet let go of Prisha’s hand and scrambled up to her feet. Prisha looked sad for a moment but a gentle expression soon replaced it.

“Alright, you can get dressed first,”

Violet nodded, disappearing into the bathroom. She could hear her heart beating violently inside her chest. When she had agreed to this trip she wasn’t expecting anything like this, but it was actually nice. Overwhelming but nice. 

Soon the two of them were dressed and made their way to a historical site that Prisha had thought would be fascinating. The Lewisburg Historic Walking Tour. It was all about the history of the Civil War and something to do with Lewisburg, but Violet really wasn’t paying too much attention to that. She was too focused on the simple joy of walking with Prisha hand in hand. 

Prisha began to talk about the history of this place. Her brown eyes always lit up whenever she got to share facts with people about the things that she knew. The facts about the different battles drew in Vi’s attention as well as the displays of weapons.   
She would pause and look closely at the different weapons interested in their designs. As the tour continued Violet smiled and tried to listen but still got distracted every step of the way by her girlfriend. Soon the walking tour was over and the pair made their way back to the pickup truck, heading over to a quiet park for lunch.

“Oh shit, I forgot something,” Violet jogged over to the truck, retrieving the present that she had gotten for Prisha. She took the small box and shoved it in her pocket before catching up with Prisha again. The two enjoyed the peaceful lunch talking about different topics. All the while Violet’s stomach turned in nervousness. _Is Prisha even going to like it?_

After they had finished lunch, Violet decided to go for it. “So, I got you something for Christmas,” Violet took out the small box and placed it in Prisha’s hand. “It’s not much.”

Prisha’s eyes danced with curiosity as she studied the box. Slowly she opened it and took out a small pin. A bluebird stood proudly on the pin, its delicate wings stretched out. “A bluebird?” Prisha looked over at Violet whose gaze had fallen to the ground.

“It’s supposed to be a symbol for happiness,” Violet nervously rubbed the side of her arm. “Because you make me happy.” Violet looked up and noticed that Prisha had tears in her eyes. “Shit, I’m sorry.”

“No, Violet, I love it.” Prisha took the pin and placed it on her jacket. She leaned forward and placed a quick kiss on Violet’s cheek when suddenly a look of realization appeared on her face. 

“I got you a present too, but I left it back at the motel.” 

“Well, then let’s head back.” 

Violet couldn’t help but smile as Prisha’s face beamed with happiness. Their arms swayed as they walked back to the car and made their way back to the motel. 

As soon as the door was unlocked Prisha ran over to her bag and pulled out a wrapped gift. She nervously held it behind her back as she turned to face Violet. “I hope you like it,” Prisha offered Violet the gift which she immediately accepted. Violet unwrapped it revealing a small wooden plaque with two constellations on it.“I made it using pyrography.” Prisha explained. “I wanted to capture a special moment so I put Ursa Minor and Ursa Major there because-”

“Because those are the constellations we saw when we went stargazing,” Violet looked over at her girlfriend with a warm smile before wrapping her arms around her. “Thanks, Prisha.” Violet whispered, her words muffled as she buried her face against her girlfriend. 

Prisha’s arms slowly wrapped around her. “Merry Christmas, Vi,” 

The two stood in silence, their hearts dancing as they embraced each other. Feeling an overabundant happiness that they were together.


	35. An Unforgettable Christmas Party

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The team gathers around to celebrate Christmas and New Year's before their winter break is over.

“Thanks for being willing to help me grab the last few things for the party,” Clementine looked over at her two best friends with an appreciative smile.

“It’s not a big deal,” Violet replied, looking left and right before crossing the street.

“Yeah, Vi’s right. Plus it’s nice to hang out for a moment with just the three of us,” Louis’ smile grew when he looked over at Violet. “I haven’t seen you since you left for your trip with Prisha.” Louis had a teasing expression on his face as he looked over at Violet whose attention seemed to focus ahead. 

“Soooo, how was the trip?”

Violet gave an annoyed glance over at Louis before looking at the ground. “Why would I tell you?”

Louis gave a mock gasp. “Violet, does our friendship mean nothing?”

“I’m sure she had a good time,” Clementine added with a smile.

“Yeah, it was nice,” Violet whispered with a smile larger than normal appearing on her face.

“Oh, so you’ll tell Clem but not me.”

“Whatever,” Violet moved forward, opening the door for the other two. The convenience store’s bell rang as they entered.

“Welcome- oh hey.” Mitch’s voice caused the trio to look over. 

“Hey, Mitch,” Violet disappeared into an aisle looking around at all the different types of snacks.

“You excited for the party tonight?” Clementine asked, popping her head out from an aisle as she spoke to Mitch.

“Yeah, it should be fun.” 

“I’m sure it will be,” Louis’ smug face made Mitch’s eyes narrow.

“What’s that supposed to mean?”

The three made their way over to the counter putting down the assortment of snacks and drinks. 

“Oh, I think you know what I mean,” Louis wiggled his eyebrows.

“No,” Mitch began to process the items. “I really don’t.”

“It’s your first party with Brody as something more than friends.” 

Mitch nearly dropped the drink he was trying to place in the bag. His face became flustered by Louis’ words. It took only a moment for him to resume bagging the items. 

“Oh?” Violet had a smirk on her face. “I didn’t know about that.” It had only been a few days since she had come back from her trip.

“Shut up, just pay for your damn snacks,” Mitch grumbled, throwing forward the bag of treats. Clementine quickly paid for the items while Violet and Louis continued to have smug looks on their faces. Soon the three of them had left the store and were beginning to make their way back to Clementine’s house when an eerily familiar sensation filled their stomachs. Before they could stop to process what was happening the scenery around them had changed, throwing them into a sanctum. An intense feeling of loneliness consumed their bodies as they stood in what looked to be someone’s home. A red couch stood against one of the walls while a side table held an array of magazines next to a remote for the TV across from the couch. 

“What the shit?” Louis looked around, confused by the whole situation.

“Shit, we must’ve stepped too close to a rift,” Clementine mumbled, the bag of treats swaying gently in her hand. 

“Is that Gabu?” Violet gestured over to the creature who was busy trying to comfort an old lady who the trio assumed was the owner of the sanctum. They couldn’t see all of her - only about a fourth of her was visible to them, most of it seemingly missing. The left upper side of her body laid against the wall. Clementine immediately went over which startled Gabu who flinched for a moment before his eyes lit up with excitement at familiar faces.

“Hey, buddy,” Louis gave a bright smile to Gabu who seemed to return it. “Were you helping her?” Louis motioned over to the old lady. Gabu glanced over at the lady and nodded proudly. 

“Gabu!”

“That was really nice of you,” Clementine’s compliment made Gabu even happier as he waved his tentacle arms. She took a step forward towards the older woman. 

“Hello, my name’s Clementine and these are my friends Louis and Violet,” she gestured to the other two. “If it’s alright, may I ask what your name is?”

The old lady’s eyes softened when she looked towards Clementine’s face which held a calm, kind expression. “Elaine Greene.”

“Ms. Greene, we are here to help you get out of this place. I know it must be confusing right now but everything will be okay. Gabu here will stay with you while we find a way to help.”

Ms. Greene’s eyes traveled down to the creature and she gave a small nod.

“I wasn’t sure what this ‘Gabu’ was, but it has seemed nice so far. Alright.” Her voice held a level of tension to it as she tried to remain strong while her mind was surely spinning with fear. Without another word Clementine and the others stepped back only to be greeted by three shadows who had appeared from the walls, falling lifelessly before snapping upright. Violet immediately threw off her glove and slammed it against her heart.

“Persona!” she called out to which La Guillotine responded, appearing behind her. Her persona dashed forward, cutting a shadow who seemed barely fazed by it. 

“Shit,” Violet whispered. Physical attacks were no good. 

Clementine shuffled the bag over to her other hand as she summoned her persona. Ma’at’s powerful wind attacks sliced through the first shadow with ease. Within seconds the room had been cleared but before the team could react the room suddenly shifted, morphing into another room. It was a dreary looking place in shades of whites and greys. From the look of the plain, empty room and style of it the team’s best guess was that it was a retirement home. Shadows dripped from the ceiling and formed together while Louis summoned Liszt, sending a volley of lighting towards the shadows. The attack was repelled and hit one of the walls. Violet instructed her persona to attack just as Clementine ordered Ma’at to do the same, but neither of their attacks seemed to do anything either. The three of them looked at each other frantically, trying to figure out a plan as the shadows moved to attack. Luckily they were able to dodge the attacks and block the rest before the room changed once again, this time into what looked to be a child’s room. Purple covers laid on top of the bed while sketches of unicorns and knights in shining armor were proudly displayed on the walls. The unicorns forced their way out of the paper, oozing onto the floor while the knights twitched unnervingly until they changed into shadows. 

“La Guillotine!” Violet hissed, sicking her persona onto the nearest shadow and tearing it to pieces. She soon dealt with the others, clearing the room. Clementine looked over with a proud expression when she noticed something. Ms.Greene looked more complete now. The entirety of the left side of her body was now visible. This plan was working. Gabu stood by Ms. Greene, a look of terror on his face that he desperately tried to mask as he continued to talk to Ms. Greene to comfort her. The room morphed in an instant into a room filled with endless paperwork and a computer where sentences upon sentences were being typed. A never-ending stream of incoherent sentences. The words shot out of the computer, whizzing past the trio’s faces and forming shadows upon the wall. Louis hopped back and shot out his finger.

“Zio!” An incredible display of thunder rained down on the group of shadows, obliterating them. Another section of Ms. Greene became visible while the room changed back to the retirement home area. The shadows awaited the team’s return, lashing out towards Clementine who dodged their attacks. None of their abilities seemed to work against them. Clementine glanced back at Ma’at. Taking a deep breath, she placed her hand once again on her heart. 

“Titania!” Her instruction caused Ma’at to freeze, placing her sword and scale together before disappearing back into Clementine’s heart while another persona took her place. A beautiful fairy queen stood in all green. Her blonde hair flowed gently behind her as her wings fluttered, awaiting Clementine’s command. 

“Frei!” 

Titania immediately let out a blue orb which surrounded a shadow’s head. Within seconds it exploded, taking out the shadow. Dodging a few more close calls, Clementine took out the remaining shadows causing Ms. Greene to be free from the wall and appear within the room. 

“Are you alright?” Clementine held out her hand to help up the older lady. 

“Yes, thank you. I’m not sure what I’d have done if you three didn’t show up.” Her kind smile was the last image of her before she turned into a bright light and faded away.

“You did good, buddy,” Louis kneeled to reach Gabu’s level.

“Gabu!”

“Oh that reminds me, Clem can I see that bag?” Louis’ question surprised Clementine. She had completely forgotten about the bag in her arm. Luckily it looked like nothing had gotten destroyed in the fight.

“Sure,”

Louis gave an appreciative smile as he dug through the contents of the bag. A joyful grin appeared on his face when he had found what he was looking for. “Here you go,” he offered the pudding cup to Gabu whose face brightened as he looked at the pudding. Snatching it up, he inhaled it immediately.

“Ah, I see you’re a man of culture as well,” Louis gave a light hearted chuckle as he reached for another one, but when he looked back up Gabu had disappeared. “Where did he go?”

“I don’t know, he was there a minute ago,” Violet replied, her arms crossed. Slowly the sanctum melted around them, bringing them back to their reality. The trio shared a confused looked as they continued on their walk back to Clementine’s house. They were glad that they were able to save Ms. Greene before the party started. 

“Well, we’d better go and get the others,” Louis declared.

“Alright, see you soon,” Clementine took the bag from her boyfriend to carry it home.

Louis gave a friendly wave goodbye as he and Violet walked back to campus. 

It wasn’t long before Clementine heard an excited knock on her door and was greeted by all of her friends. Guiding them to the living room, she made her way over to the kitchen to grab the snacks and drinks with Ruby’s help. When she had returned she noticed Lee had already begun to start small talk with her friends. 

“It’s nice to see you all again and some new faces. I haven’t seen you since Halloween,” He gave a warm smile as he talked to Prisha who stood beside Violet.

“Thank you for letting us stay over and opening your house to us,”

Lee waved a hand at Prisha’s words. “Think nothing of it,”

Prisha paused for a moment, considering something before looking back at Lee.

“Do you recall that the last time we were here you talked about how it was nice that there were three couples?”

“Oh yeah, I’m sorry about that,” Lee gave an apologetic smile. “It was wrong of me to assume.”

“Well, your assumption turned out to be right!” Prisha exclaimed, grabbing Violet’s hand. “Because we’re together!” 

Lee’s eyes widened in shock before softening.

“Oh, well that’s great!” 

“It is great! It’s fantastic!” Prisha held up her hand, intertwined with Violet’s proudly. Violet’s gaze was focused entirely on the floor, her face covered in a deep blush. One look from Prisha made it clear that she was shocked by her own declaration, an expression of happiness, pride and embarrassment covering her face. There was a moment of silence when Clementine and Ruby came over and placed down the different snacks. 

“Well I should leave you kids to your party. I have some papers to grade.” Lee began to turn around when he heard Aasim’s voice.

“Oh, are you a professor?” Aasim’s question made Lee smile.

“That’s right. A history professor at your university in fact.”

Aasim’s eyes widened in shock.

“You’re a history professor?” His eyes danced with excitement at the information.

“That’s right. Did Clem not tell you?” Lee looked over at his daughter who flashed an apologetic smile and then returned her attention to her group of friends.

“No, she didn’t. So what kind of history do you teach?” 

“Civil War mainly,” Lee answered proudly. 

“I have to take your class this coming semester! It’s not my line of history, but I’m sure I’d be able to learn plenty from you.” Aasim’s smile grew on his face at the thought.

“I’d love to have you in my class,” Lee chuckled goodnaturedly.” I tried to get Clementine to choose history as her major, but she didn’t.”

“That’s because it just wasn’t the right major for me,” Clementine answered, walking up to join the conversation. “But I think I’m getting on the right track to finding out the major I want to study.”

Lee quirked an eyebrow; this was the first he had heard of this. “Oh really?”

“Yeah, I’ve been thinking and I want to find some sort of major that has to do with the justice system. Not quite sure what, but that’s what I’m feeling drawn to.”

Prisha seemed happy at the news. It was rare to find someone with that sort of major. 

“That’s great, Clem!” Louis walked over towards his girlfriend. “Hey Vi, have you found out what you're majoring in yet or is it still major of the week for you.” Violet shot him an annoyed glare. 

“Still haven’t found it yet.” Violet’s gaze returned to the floor.

“There’s nothing wrong with that,” Lee’s reassuring words seemed to help Violet as she looked back up towards him. “Well, I really should get to work, have fun.” he called out to the rest of the group who all thanked him and then returned to their conversations. 

Suddenly a sound from the kitchen drew everyone’s attention. Ruby stood in the kitchen surrounded by bowls of dough and different cookie cutters along with other decorating items. Aasim soon appeared beside her.

“We should get started on the Christmas cookies,” 

Everyone looked excited at Ruby’s suggestion, all making their way to the kitchen. “Once we get to decorating everyone will have their own tools so they don’t get mixed up.”

“Eh, it should be fine,” Mitch gave a shrug as he tried to grab some of the cookie dough only to get his hand slapped by Ruby. “At this party we will be taking Christmas cookie decorating very seriously. This is not a joke. This is not a game. This is Christmas!” Ruby declared with a serious smile. Everyone looked around at each other before deciding it was best not to argue. So they began to roll out the dough, separating into different pairs as they started to cut out the different shapes creating snowmen, candy canes and Christmas trees. After a while the cookies were in the oven and Ruby and Aasim volunteered to start on the icing which Brody and Marlon soon offered to help with as well. 

“Oh, wait!” Louis ran over to his bag, pulling out a small Christmas tree and a gold star. “I got us a tree!”

Violet snorted. “It’s tiny!”

“I think it’s cute,” Clementine’s words caused Louis’ face to brighten as he leaned over and planted a quick kiss on her cheek before putting the small Christmas tree on the side table. Dramatically holding up the golden star, he walked toward the tree singing in a funny voice. “AaaaaaAHHH!” He placed down the star on top of the tree. 

Willy and AJ jumped up and down with excitement. 

“Hey, you wanna have a contest?” Willy asked with a playful smile, the gaps in his teeth displayed as he smiled. AJ gave a curious look as the anticipation of the potentially fun challenge built inside him. “What kind of contest?” 

Willy ran over to the hallway, dragging Aj behind him. “We run and slid across the floor with our socks and whoever makes it the farthest wins!” 

AJ’s face lit up with excitement at Willy’s explanation. He nodded excitedly.

The two boys began the game. Willy was up first and ran forward, sliding about halfway down the hallway. AJ was up next and ended up passing by Willy’s spot by a few inches. Willy let out an annoyed groan. “I wanna rematch!”

AJ immediately agreed and the boys continued to play a few rounds which ended more than a few times with the two of them on their butts. 

“Cookies are out and cooled!” Ruby’s warm voice drew back the group to the kitchen. After Ruby demonstrated with a cookie how to properly decorate them, the group was split off into pairs. 

“I’m gonna make Clem!” AJ declared before snatching up the colors he needed. 

Louis’ eyes widened. He hadn’t thought of that. “I’m gonna do that too!”

“Well then I’m making the two of you.” Clementine gave a happy smile as she began her work. Brody was slowly working on her own design when Mitch’s voice caused her to veer too far off and add a red mustache on Santa.

“Oh fuck!” Mitch grumbled as he fumbled with his Christmas cookie.

“Swear,” AJs voice carried from across the table. 

“What?”

“If you swear, you have to put one dollar in the swear jar.” AJ explained, motioning towards the jar on the counter.

“Dammit,” Mitch grumbled as he made his way over to the swear jar, throwing the dollar in before he realized he had done it again. 

“Dammit!” He felt like kicking himself. He had just lost three dollars. He grumpily got back to his seat when Brody leaned over to look at his cookie.

“I think your tree looks nice,” Her smile caused Mitch’s face to soften.

“Thanks,” 

“Oh no!” Louis tilted his head back as he groaned. “I messed up on my Clem cookie.” He gestured towards the cookie. It had ended up having two bulging brown eyes that seemed to have seen things based on the look of them. 

“I think it looks good,” Clementine reassured, her attention with her own cookies. 

“Well, my Violet cookie turned out well!” Prisha displayed her cookie proudly. It wasn’t a half bad job. The hair looked similar to Violet’s and the rest of it was passable. 

“Wait, you're making cookies of each other?” Brody asked as she leaned forward to look. “Are you doing it too, Vi?”

Violet looked away hiding her cookie. “It’s stupid.”

“I’m sure it’s not.” Prisha’s words caused Violet to consider showing the Christmas cookie. Brody’s attention turned away as she tried to see what cookies remained. There were still quite a few but none of them were gingerbread men. 

“You do realize someone’s going to eat those cookies, right?” Mitch pointed out, causing the others to pause. 

“A few cookies that no one can eat isn’t bad,” Louis stated, pulling the Christmas cookie closer to him. 

After a while all the cookies had been decorated, ranging from ones that looked more like they came out of nightmares mainly done by Willy and AJ to beautifully decorated ones done by Ruby and Aasim. 

“Who made this one?” Marlon asked, pointing towards a snowman who had brown hair and green eyes.

“I did,” Brody whispered. “It’s supposed to be Mitch cause everyone else made each other, but there were only snowmen left.” 

Mitch looked over at her for a moment with a small smile. 

“Well, now that that is done it’s time for the entertainment!” Louis rose up, making his way over to his bag. “Who's ready to dance?”

It only took a few minutes for Louis to set up Just Dance, but it took him a while longer to find willing participants. After a few attempts though he was able to get Aasima and Mitch to join him in a dance to Tel Aviv. Mitch had selected the character with an open shirt while Louis chose the man in the middle with a hat and khakis leaving Aasim with the shorts and golf hat. The song started out stifly as Mitch and Aasim awkwardly mimicked the dance moves on screen while Louis danced to his heart’s content. The three of them moved their hands down slowly, raising them up as they danced to the beat.

It took a minute but soon Mitch and Aasim had forgotten the people watching and started to get really into the song. The trio stood together and moved their hands towards each other, nearly high fiving before moving to the next move, shooting out their hands to the sky back and forth and dancing to the beat. Each of them was starting to get competitive as they tried to get the highest score, trying to land the signature moves that gave a high boost in points. It didn't seem long before the song was over and the three stood in a final pose. Louis proudly displayed his arms while Aasim crouched beside him showing off one of his own arms, leaving Mitch who was left with a move where he pretended to display his abs. 

The clapping of the group and cheers drew them back into reality, causing Mitch and Aasim to get embarrassed by their own dancing. After some reassurance from their girlfriends they calmed down and the group moved on to some more songs. Everyone took turns except for Brody who seemed too nervous to dance. They figured it would be best not to push her. 

“Hey Marlon, let’s dance to this one!” Louis pointed excitedly at the screen. Marlon returned a smile that soon turned competitive. 

“Alright, but you better get ready to lose!” The two soon selected their characters as Skibidi started to play. The song started out slow in terms of dance moves as they marched in place moving their fists back and forth, one overlapping the other before switching. Soon the two danced around in a circle. Then came the pelvic thrust which caused some giggles to come from the audiences, but Marlon and Louis didn’t seem to care as they continued to compete. It was all going great until Lee emerged from his study at the worst possible time. Just when Louis was thrusting his hips enthusiastically he froze. 

“SIR! I respect professors!” His voice cracked while he tried to remain calm.

“What are you doing, Louis? Come on.” Marlon danced around him before his eyes caught sight of Lee. “Oh, sir!” Marlon also stopped, embarrassed, a wave of awkwardness washing over him. 

Lee chuckled at the pair’s reaction. “It’s fine. You’re playing Just Dance? Mind if I have a go?”

“Please, go right ahead!” Louis handed him a controller and Lee quickly selected ‘California Girls’. He turned around and held out the other controller.

“Anyone want to join me?”

Everyone was shocked when Brody stood up and accepted the controller. “It’s the only song I’m good at,” she stated as she got ready to dance. Lee and Brody stood side by side as they danced, walking to the left and then the right, swaying their arms back and forth with the music. The group watched in a mixture of fascination and awe as both Brody and Lee matched the dance moves perfectly, each of them getting ‘perfect’ on nearly every move as they moved in near perfect sync. When the song had ended both of them stood breathing heavily. 

“Well played,” Lee offered his hand with a smile. Brody quickly accepted it.

“Thanks, you’re really good too.” 

Lee joined in for another song or two before returning to his work. Soon the group was tired of dancing and instead decided to hang out while Louis played some Christmas songs and everyone talked about some of their favorite things about Christmas.Clementine glanced over at Louis wondering for a moment if she should sit beside him. Rising up she walked over to the piano and slid into the spot next to him. Louis looked over with a warm smile before continuing his song. Everyone else was caught up in the different tales, each got their own turn, excitedly telling the others of a happy memory when suddenly Louis stopped the music. Clementine looked over at her boyfriend, confused as to why he had stopped playing. 

“This is a Christmas party,” He got up. “But it’s also a New Year’s party and you know what that means?” a devious smile played on his life as mischief swirled in his eyes. 

“What are you talking about?” Ruby asked, looking over by the piano. 

“Well, when the clock strikes midnight it’s tradition for couples to kiss,” 

Nearly everyone seemed flustered by his statement. 

“Kiss?” Brody whispered, glancing over at Mitch but instantly looking away when he looked over. 

“It’s tradition, so we gotta do it!” Louis looked down at his phone, letting out a goofy chuckle. “And it looks like there’s only one minute left.”

All the different couples looked at each other as the time slipped away. 

Ruby gazed at Aasim. They had kissed before but never on the lips. She wasn’t sure if this was the best way to first kiss, but it didn’t mean that she didn’t want to. Looking at Aasim, she could tell that he seemed to be in a similar mindset. 

Violet and Prisha had made their way over to a more secluded area of the room, both of them excited and nervous as the minute slowly counted down. 

Louis and Clementine were ready with Louis counting down the seconds. “Ten, nine, eight,” 

Brody felt her heart race as Louis counted down. She looked at Mitch who seemed just as flustered by this whole thing. They had just gotten together and now they would kiss? This was insane, but neither of them seemed to object. 

“Five, four, three...” 

Brody and Mitch awkwardly moved their faces, trying to get in the best position to kiss when suddenly there was only a second left. 

“There’s no time!” Brody exclaimed, grabbing Mitch’s shirt and pulling him into a kiss just as the counter ran out. The two leaned into the kiss for a second before pulling away, both of them blushing heavily at the romantic gesture. 

Ruby and Aasim had shared a more gentle kiss when the time ran out. Ruby’s hands had slowly cupped Aasim’s face as she leaned forward and the two shared a kiss. 

Over on the other side of the room, Violet and Prisha had gotten lost in their own kiss when it had turned midnight, both of them smiling at each other when they pulled away. 

Louis had decided to go the extra mile and dipped Clementine before he kissed her passionately. The two seemed to not want the kiss to end until Louis finally pulled away and flashed a flirty smile. “Merry New Year,” His face fell when he realized what he had said. “Oh, dammit.”

Clementine looked up at her boyfriend; she loved how dorky he was. Reaching up, she pulled his head close to steal another kiss.

“Swear!” AJ’s voice appeared beside them.

Blindly, Louis reached for his back pocket and handed AJ a bill as he continued to fall deeper into the kiss. AJ let out a joyful gasp when he realized that it was a twenty dollar bill. Willy and him started jumping up and down at the large amount of money. 

After the moment had ended, the group gathered around back in the living room and started to move the couches to set out their sleeping bags. Soon everyone had gotten into their sleeping bags and continued to talk the hours away, eventually falling asleep happy with their Merry New Year’s Party.


	36. Getting Back Into the Swing of Things

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Clementine and her friends start up a new semester at Ericson University where things are sure to get interesting...

Clementine rolled around on her mattress, the sleepiness still clinging onto her as she willed herself out of bed. Winter break was over and with it came a new semester filled with new classes, more assignments and she was sure many more sanctums. Letting out a tired sigh she rose and got dressed for the day. Her feet hit heavily against the stairs while she made her way to the dining room table where her brother was already happily munching on breakfast. Lee looked up from his newspaper with a warm smile. 

“Morning, sweetpea,”

“Morning,” Clementine responded groggily, shuffling her way into the kitchen to grab a bowl for cereal. 

“Excited for your classes this semester?” Lee’s question carried from across the room. Clementine poured herself a cup of coffee, a yawn escaping her lips before she answered. 

“I guess there are a few. Louis, Vi and I are doing an intro to anthropology together which sounds like it could be interesting,” Clementine placed her bowl down, filling it full of cereal. 

“You still seem to be on a winter break mode,” Lee let out a good-hearted laugh. Clementine gave a small groan as she threw her spoon into the milky contents of the bowl. 

“I’m sure the semester will be good. Just gotta get back in the swing of things.” The three ate silently for a few minutes. The only sound filling the room was that of silverware as their breakfast was consumed. 

“That reminds me, I have to tell you something before you leave,” Lee placed down his newspaper on the side of the table. “AJ’s in a new art program for kids his age at Ericson University and I have a late class today. Would you be willing to drop by and pick him up? He should be done around 4:30.”

“Sure,” Clementine looked between AJ and Lee. “I didn’t know you were into art now, AJ.” 

AJ looked over at his sister for a minute then returned to his cereal with an upset expression on his face.

“He’s doing it in hopes to help him get along better with other kids. He got into a fight with one of his classmates at the end of last semester.”

“He came up behind me, what was I supposed to do?” AJ’s face twisted with anger as he crossed his arms. 

“Still doesn’t mean you get in a fight with someone,” Clementine’s words made AJ’s face soften. 

“Anyway, I’m sure you’ll have a lot of fun in the program.” Lee gave a kind smile to his son. Clementine glanced down at her watch and mumbled something under her breath. 

“I need to go,” She ran over to the door. swinging her backpack onto her shoulders. “I’ll see you later, AJ.”

AJ nodded, giving a friendly wave while Clementine left her house and made her way towards the fountain where her friends waited. 

Clementine showed up at the fountain breathing heavily when she noticed her friends waiting for her.

“I”m here,” Clementine took a deep breath.

“Yes you are, “ Louis gave a happy smile. “Well, let’s head to what’s sure to be the start of an exciting semester.” His coat fluttered while he turned sharply on his heel. 

“Probably not,” Violet mumbled, her feet dragging while she walked beside Louis.

“Aww, I’m sure it will be a good semester,” Ruby flashed a reassuring smile over Violet’s way. Violet simply grumbled in response.

“I just hope no sanctums show up during class.” Clementine jogged up to join them. “Oh, that reminds me. After class still works for all of you, right?”

“Yep,” Louis cheerily replied, his hand intertwining with Clementine’s.

“Brody and I have been working on the first batch of medicine. It should be good to go whenever we do run into a sanctum.” Ruby stopped in her tracks. “Oh, there’s Building I. I’ll see y’all later.” Ruby ran off, turning around to quickly give one final wave before disappearing into the building. The trio resumed their walk towards their own class. 

“So, think anthropology will be any good?” Clementine looked over at her two friends.

“I think so,” Louis looked over at his girlfriend. “At the very least we’ll have each other to keep us from getting bored if the class is a bust.”

“Can’t be any worse than math class,” Violet grumbled as Louis ran forward to hold open the door for the other two. The three of them shuffled into the classroom, claiming three seats beside each other and placing down their bags. After getting out their notebooks and pencils for the class the three continued their conversation until the professor walked in. 

“Hey, sorry I’m late.” The professor gave an apologetic smile as he placed down his pile of books. He was an Asian man with a small mustache and beard. It seemed like from the second he walked into the room it was filled with a calming aura. “I’m still getting lost around campus and I’ve been teaching here for years.” He gave a small chuckle and turned to the whiteboard, beginning to write something as he continued. “My name is Professor Thorton but you can just call me Professor or Professor Matthew if that’s more your speed.” He looked back at the room which remained silent at his words. 

“I know the first day is always the worst just going over the syllabus and the introductions. But what if I told you that it’s totally fine if you bring snacks into class? If you share, that would be even better.” He leaned over his pile of books, pulling out a textbook and opening it to the first page. 

“Welcome to Intro to Anthropology. How many of you are interested in majoring in anthropology?” A few stray hands shot up in the air. “Alright, well even if you’re not majoring in it I still think anthropology is a valuable and interesting subject to learn about. So does anyone want to give their best guess as to what you study in anthropology?” He looked around the room excitedly, his face falling slightly when no one seemed to care to answer. His eyes searched the room before locking onto Clementine. “How about you in the back? Wanna give it a shot?”

Clementine looked surprised momentarily then focused her attention on the question placed in front of her. 

“Isn’t it the study of cultures?”

Professor Matthew’s eyes lit up at her words.

“That’s right! Or partially right. What you’re talking about is cultural anthropology which is what most people think of when they hear anthropology.Anthropology is basically the study of human societies and cultures as well as their development but there are five different categories of anthropology. The five of them are cultural, linguistic, arcaehology, physical anthropology and practical. We will be covering all of them in this class.” His marker whacked against the whiteboard, excitedly filling the board with facts. “Anthropology is a good class to take to learn about other cultures and discuss them.” The rest of lecture continued on from that point, mainly covering what was to be expected of the students and the different books and papers they would look over throughout the semester. After forty minutes the class was dismissed early.

Louis was the first up, stretching out his arms. “So, not a bad class.”

“I guess,” Violet mumbled, throwing her books into her bag.

“I think it could be really interesting,” Clementine swung the bag back on her back, making her way out to the meetup spot with the others. “Could broaden our views.”

“That’s true,” Louis looked up at the sky as they strolled to the spot where Brody waited.

“Hey Brody!” Louis slid into a chair causing Brody to glance up from her psych book. 

“Hey guys! How was your first class?” She placed her book away while the rest of them sat down.

“Okay. The professor seems cool,” Violet leaned back in her seat, her eyes wandering the campus, pausing when she noticed familiar faces. “There they are.”

The others looked to where Violet’s eyes were watching and saw Ruby and Aasim casually strolling down the walkway. Their attention seemed to be solely on each other, absorbed in their own conversation. Their intertwined hands gently swayed while they made their way over. 

“Hey, you two!” Brody’s friendly voice made the couple look over and return the wave before sitting down. 

“So what’s on the agenda for today?” Aasim asked, pulling a chair out for Ruby and then taking a spot beside her. 

“Nothing much. Just checking in and going over some general things to refresh our memory,” Clementine opened the notebook in front of her, double checking her notes. 

“Oh, “Ruby dug around in her bag and placed a couple vials of gnarly green liquid in front of them. “Brody and I have been working on some healing items. Potions and…” she revealed a few pouches of green and brown powder, “Crushed medicinal herbs.” Ruby frowned when she saw the expressions on Louis and Violet’s faces. “No need to make such sour faces.”

“I’m sure they’ll taste better than they look,” Brody tried to lift up the mood but was soon shot down by Violet.

“They look like puke.”

Aasim was about to add into the conversation when Clementine spoke up.

“Doesn’t matter what it looks like. If it can heal us in sanctums that will be a huge help to us. We can conserve our healing and not push Ruby or Brody too hard.”

“That reminds me,” Aasim pulled a piece of folded paper out of his pocket, opening it up and displaying it on the table for the team to see. Before them was a rough sketch of the formation for the different team members in the sanctum.

“I figure it would be best to leave Violet out in front. She’s our strongest physical attacker. While you, Louis and myself should remain in the middle primarily using magic.” His finger traveled further down the page. “Then Brody and Ruby should be in the back. Focusing on their magic, both physical and healing.” 

Clementine looked at the map thoughtfully. Aasim had come up with a good formation. “If the potions work, then we can have Brody focus on defensive magic and healing, primarily Violet. Ruby’s full abilities are still unknown to us.” Clementine noticed Ruby looking a bit down. 

Louis put a hand on Ruby’s shoulder. “Don’t worry, Ruby. Aasim and I will add it into our notes as soon as we figure it out. I’m sure you have some pretty badass moves hidden in your sleeves.” Louis’ words seemed to lift up Ruby’s spirits.

“What if Willy joined us?” Violet’s question made Aasim look over towards her. 

“He would stay behind with the healers as a final defense against shadows’ potential attacks against them.” Aasim dug around in his jacket pockets and revealed a few more pieces of paper “I also came up with some other formations in case any of us were unable to join in a battle.” The team looked over the various formations, impressed by Aasim’s level of detail and workmanship.

“Sounds good. We also need to think of potential weapons for Willy and Ruby.” Clementine leaned back further into her chair.

“I can look into that,” Violet added. “I’m sure we can find something for them at a thrift store.”

Clementine then moved on to a basic recap of the different information they had gathered so far about the other world. Clementine took a deep breath.

“Okay, if that’s all then-”

“Oh!” Louis’ exclamation nearly made Brody jump. His hand searched his bag desperately before revealing a slightly beat up brochure “ I made us a brochure in case we ever get a new member!” He displayed it proudly on the table. It was an eccentric-looking brochure with many different fonts and colors making it seem like it couldn’t decide what it wanted to be. It covered all the basic questions: what a persona is, what a sanctum is, basic 101 rules to combat.

“Louis, this looks…” Clementine was trying to find the right words.

“Looks like a chaotic mess,” Aasim stated dryly. “How is this going to help any new member? Besides we can just tell them the information.”

“I don’t know, Aasim. I think it could be helpful,” Ruby placed a gentle hand on Aasim’s arm.

“I like it. I think it could be easier for new members to understand the confusing parts of being a persona user.” Brody lifted up the brochure. “Mind if I keep it so I can make copies later?”

“Sure! Make as many copies as you like!” Louis’ smile grew at Brody’s question. After a few more minutes of discussing the brochure the group split off, going their separate ways to continue on their day.

“I gotta go, I’ll see you later,“ Louis leaned forward, placing a soft kiss on Clementine’s lips before departing for his next class. Clementine watched her boyfriend run down towards Building E, a warm feeling filling her chest. With one final glance towards him, she walked away making her way towards where the Art Department was on campus. She walked through the winding hallways before stopping in front of the door which held a sign for the afterschool program. Opening the door and scanning the room, she quickly caught sight of AJ whose face immediately brightened when he saw his sister.

“Clem!” He ran forward, wrapping his arms around her. She had knelt down to his level and enjoyed the warm embrace.

“Hey kiddo, did you have fun?”

Yeah!” AJ nodded excitedly. “I made a friend!” He pointed over at a tall boy who was nervously fidgeting his fingers as he waited for someone. A large burn mark covered the right side of his face. He looked over at AJ giving a small wave, a smile appearing on his face. 

“Oh yeah?”

“Yeah, his name is Tenn and he’s really good at art! The best!” AJ continued to talk animatedly as the pair of siblings made their way to the door.

“Well, maybe next time I’ll come by earlier and you can introduce me.”

AJ’s smile widened at his sister’s words. Clementine returned the smile, accidentally bumping into someone who was just entering the room. 

“Oh, sorry about that!” a tall redhead girl with a baseball cap placed backwards on her head back stepped, leaving the doorway open for them. “Are you okay?”

“I’m fine, don’t worry about it. I should have been paying attention too.”

The redhead gave a short nod and extended her hand. “I’m Sophie!”

Clementine immediately took her hand, giving a firm shake. “Clementine. This is AJ.” She gestured towards her brother.

Sophie’s smile grew when she looked at AJ. “It’s nice to meet both of you. Are you in the art program, AJ?”

“That’s right,” AJ replied, quietly standing slightly behind Clementine.

“That’s awesome! My brother is in the program too. Maybe you know him. His name is Tenn,” Sophie’s eyes looked round the room. “Oh there he is,” She waved energetically towards Tenn who ran over.

“You’re Tenn’s sister?” AJ asked, taking a step forward. 

“That’s right!” Her bright smile beamed when Tenn stood beside her. She gave a quick side hug to her brother.

“He’s really good at art!” AJ’s words seemed to make Tenn look away. “The best!”

“Not as good as Sophie,” Tenn whispered, his fingers beginning to fidget again. 

“Oh, come on,” Sophie gave her brother a playful nudge. “I better keep practicing or else you’re gonna leave me in the dust.”

“You’re an artist too?!” AJ looked at Sophie with awe.

“That’s right? I’m even majoring in it!”

“Majoring?” AJ looked up at Clementine.

“It means she’s studying it. Practicing to be even better!” 

“You gotta show me next time!”

Sophie gave a lighthearted laugh, playing with her cap for a moment. 

“Tell you what: I’ll try to show up early next time and see if they’ll let me join in. Clem can join too if she wants,” She looked over at Clementine who was touched by the offer.

“It’s a deal.” Clementine glanced down at her watch, her eyes widening at the time. “We should get going. Our dad’s probably worried.”

“Right, of course! Sorry to keep you, but it was nice meeting Tenn’s friend and you too.” Sophie’s very aura seemed to exude warmth as she gave another smile to the pair of siblings. 

“Nice to meet you too!” Clementine said, waving back at the two before making her way off campus with AJ who continued to talk about the art program and all the amazing things that happened that day. 


	37. A Destructive Edge

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Brody and Mitch go on a date when suddenly they run into trouble.

Brody looked at her drawer, unsure whether she should change her outfit or not for her date tonight. Mitch had asked her out so it would be rude to not dress up for it. But what if she dressed up too much? Brody fell back onto her bed with a defeated groan when her roommate entered the room.

“Aww, Sug, still having trouble getting ready?” Ruby looked down at Brody who responded by covering her face with a pillow. 

“It’s stupid,” Brody’s words came out muffled from behind the fluffy pillow.

“No it’s not.” Ruby placed her hands on her hips before yanking the pillow away from Brody. “Now let’s get up and get you ready for your date.”

Brody accepted her friend’s hand and the two of them began the process of narrowing down the perfect outfit for her. They landed on a dark purple shirt covered by a plum cardigan and a pair of comfy jeans. Ruby clapped excitedly as Brody turned from left to right displaying her outfit. “You look so pretty!”

Brody felt slightly overwhelmed by her friend’s words. “Thanks, Ruby,” Her eyes wandered over to the clock and she realized that she was running out of time. “I should go. I’ll be back by eight. Nine at the latest,” She snatched up her purse and swung in over her shoulder. 

“Have fun!” Ruby called out as Brody closed the door and made her way over near the entrance of the University.

Mitch waited there, leaning against his car. When she had made her way over, Mitch looked over with a happy smile playing on his lips. 

“Hey, sorry I’m late.”

“Don’t worry about it,'' Mitch kicked himself off his car and went over and opened the door for his girlfriend.

“Thanks,” Brody whispered as she watched her boyfriend make his way over to his seat. Putting the keys in the ignition, Mitch pulled out into the street and headed towards their destination.

“So, ever been to Reggie’s Burgers before?” 

Mitch glanced over at Brody then returned his gaze to the road. “Nope, but I heard the burgers there are to die for and the fries are the best in West Virginia.” He paused for a moment, unsure whether a burger shop was the best place to take Brody for a date. 

Brody seemed to pick up his emotions right away. “I can’t wait! I’m always in the mood for a good burger!” 

Mitch’s face lit up at her words. “It’s not too far from here,” He turned sharply on a corner.

Within five minutes they were pulling into the parking lot. Mitch opened the door once again for Brody who gave an appreciative smile. Brody glanced down at Mitch’s hand as the couple walked towards the entrance and tried to get up her courage when suddenly she felt warmth surrounding her hand. Looking down she saw that Mitch had taken the initiative and when she glanced over she was met Mitch’s eyes. A shy smile was on his face. Brody returned the smile and opened up the door for the two of them as they entered the shop.

“Welcome to Reggie’s Burgers! How many of you will there be?” The waitress walked towards them.

“Just the two of us,” Mitch stated.

The waitress grabbed two menus and led them towards a booth. “Let me know when you’re ready,” she said with a warm smile.

“Ok, thank you,” Brody whispered as she accepted the menu. Mitch and Brody sat in silence for a few minutes while they decided what to get. When they were sure what they wanted, Mitch got the attention of the waitress and the couple placed their order. 

“So how were your classes?” Mitch grabbed the straw that laid beside his drink and began to unravel the wrapping.

“They were good, I really like my new psychology professor and the rest of the classes seem good so far.”

“That’s good,” Mitch took a long sip from his drink as the conversation continued, leading into what he would do if he ever went to college. “If I had the money, I’d major in chemistry. It’s always been interesting to me ever since I was a kid. When I was younger I used to get in fights with the neighborhood kids,” Mitch looked over and saw the shocked look on his girlfriend’s face. “They didn’t like my face.”

“They didn’t like your face?” Brody stared at her boyfriend who gave a shrug.

“Anyway, my dad bought me a chemistry set to help keep me out of trouble and be a better example to Willy. But I ended up blowing up the garage.”

Brody was struck by a revelation. That’s why there was the burn mark outside his garage. “You blew up your garage?”

“Yeah, it was kinda awesome!” Mitch gave a smirk, pausing in his story when the food arrived. “But now I’d seriously study chemistry if I had the chance to.”

“I’m sure you will someday!”

Mitch stopped his eating to look over at Brody who had such a genuine, sweet smile on her face that he couldn’t help but smile as well. The couple continued to talk about different topics until they were done eating. Then they made their way over to Marsh Park across the street from the burger shop. Mitch’s hand felt so warm in Brody’s hand as they strolled down the park. The lights that shone on the walkway flickered in and out in the park.

“That was really good!” Brody smiled up at Mitch who nodded in agreement.

“Yeah, that burger was fucking awesome! I should totally take Willy there sometime.”

“He’d love it!” Brody’s smile immediately disappeared when she looked in front of them. Mitch’s face scrunched in concern and confusion as he followed his girlfriend’s gaze to where two men stood. In their hands were switchblades.

“Give us your purse and wallet and no one gets hurt.” the man on the right instructed, making his way over to Brody and snatching her purse. The other took the wallet from Mitch’s hand before tossing it to the other. He then made his way over to Brody, holding a knife to her. Mitch’s eyes burned as he watched Brody’s eyes swirl with fear and concern, hoping that this would all soon be over. Without thinking, Mitch lunged forward and hit the blade out of the man’s hand. The other thug looked frightened as he began to sprint away with Brody’s purse and Mitch’s wallet.

“Get back here, asshole!” Mitch yelled, sprinting after him with a fiery rage. 

“Mitch!” Brody called out, but her boyfriend was already too far away. 

Mitch willed his legs to move faster as he continued to follow the man who tried desperately to run away. When he glanced back his eyes widened in fear as he noticed Mitch was right behind him. Mitch swung his arm out, grabbing the man’s collar with a vice grip. 

“Give it back,” Mitch commanded. The man obeyed, shaking while he handed back the stolen items. Mitch took the purse and wallet before letting the man go. The thief scrambled away from him. Mitch took a deep breath, looking down at the items.

_ Shit, Brody. _

He spun around and took a step forward only to be thrown into another realm. 

Brody looked at the thug that still stood in front of her. She needed to act faster before he picked up the switchblade again. Swiftly Brody sent her knee against his groin. The man let out a sharp cry. Seeing her chance Brody sprinted off after Mitch, hoping that he was still okay. As she followed the path that she had seen him run down, she was consumed by a disturbingly familiar sensation. A rift was nearby. When she turned the corner she saw that her feeling was right. There standing in the middle of the walkway was a rift. Brody felt her heart pumping against her ears. 

_ What if it’s Mitch’s? _

She hesitated for a moment before sprinting forward, accepting the rift’s embrace as she was pulled into the other world. It took her a few moments to get reoriented. When she did she found herself in an old garage. A dusty workbench laid against the wall. On the left hand corner of it was a picture of Willy with Mitch’s arm around his shoulder; both brothers had huge grins on their faces. Another picture frame stood beside it of his parents. Further up the room laid a chemistry set. Test tubes bubbled and fumed, creating the only sound in the room.The far left corner of the room had a large pile of papers. Each of them held a new idea or invention ranging from silly gadgets to serious thoughtful ideas. On the wall in front of her was a collection of drawings by WiIly. Each of them depicted its own brilliant yet crazy invention. Brody took a step forward, pausing when she saw black smudges on her shoes. Looking down, she saw the scorch mark left by Mitch’s explosion all those years ago. Brody continued her way into the room and noticed out of the corner of her eye an open door revealing an all too nostalgic hallway. Brody ran down it and tried the door only for her suspicion to be confirmed: Mitch was in the middle of dealing with his construct. Brody felt a weird mixture of confusion and fury mix in her gut, Mitch’s emotions seeping through the door. Her heart rate quickened, her hands shaking at the thought of another one of the people she cared about stuck in a place she could not enter. 

Mitch looked around, confused why the door had led to a place that looked like an interrogation room. He had to get out of here; Brody was probably worried right about now. Not only that, he realized now that he had left her with one of the muggers.

_ Dammit, where the fuck is the exit? _

He scanned the room closely when his eyes stopped in front of him. There standing in front of him was… himself?

“What the fuck?” he whispered, his mind trying to figure out what was going on. The construct looked up at him with a smirk. “Who are you?”

“Are you really that fucking stupid? I am you and you are me.” the construct stated, jumping up to sit on the table. 

“That’s a load of-”

“I know everything, but if you need proof so fucking bad, fine,” It looked pissed off at Mitch glaring at him.

“September 19th.”

Mitch felt his heart stop when he heard the date.

“Your mom died that day and that’s when you decided to finally man up and try to be useful for once instead of being a reckless, destructive piece of shit.” The construct landed hard on its feet, strolling towards one of the walls. Mitch felt his emotions bubble inside of him. Confusion, pain and anger swirled deeply in his gut. 

“Why don’t you just admit that you're playing at being a good son?” The construct seemed to hate even looking at Mitch. “The good brother, the good boyfriend... It’s a load of shit.”

Mitch felt his hands curl into fists at his sides. 

“Pretending to be helpful when all that will happen is that you keep working at the dead end job, amounting to nothing until you’ll finally realize the truth.” The construct closed the gap between them, a twisted smirk contorting his face. “You’ll realize that your destructive nature is all there is to you.” 

Mitch’s teeth bit hard on his lip. He swung out his arm, sending the construct flying across the room.

It let out a spine-chilling laugh. Standing up with its back still bent, it snapped forward. “That’s right! Show me how fucking tough you are!” 

Mitch took a shaky step back.

“COME ON! LET’S SEE IT! YOU’RE JUST GOING TO DESTROY EVERYTHING IN YOUR LIFE!” the construct screamed at the tops of its lungs, breathing heavily. 

“It’s time to stop the act and show the others who you really are.” Its voice suddenly changed to one Mitch thought he’d never hear again, not in this lifetime. 

“Mitch, I need you to promise me to help your father and look out for Willy. It’s going to be tough on all of you, but I need you to help them and be good.” 

Mitch’s eyes fell, his head pounding at the memory.

“You’ll break that promise because it isn’t who you are.”

Mitch looked over at the construct, trying to glare, but it soon fell apart. Suddenly a piece of paper appeared on the table along with a quill. 

“Sign it,” the construct stated.

Mitch had no feeling left in his feet, but they dragged forward anyway. Then he felt Brody’s purse hit against the side of his leg. He froze. In that moment his mind filled with different memories of Brody and Willy and his friends. A memory stuck out stronger than the others. It was a little while ago when he came home from a tough day at work dealing with some stuck-up assholes. Willy ran over to him, a look of pride on his face as he greeted him. He begged Mitch to play with him for a while which Mitch agreed to. The time spent with his brother calmed him down. 

“You’re the best big brother!” Willy ran forward, wrapping his arms around him. Mitch looked surprised at his little brother’s action before wrapping his arms around him too. “I wanna be just like you when I get older and I’ll be sure to help out a ton too like you!”

A small smile pulled on his face at the memory. He looked back at the construct with a burning determination in his eyes.

“You’re full of shit! I know that I’m a good person because the ones I care about see it within me!” 

The construct fled back, a white orb circling around its gut.

“You’re the one full of shit! This act will fail and I can’t wait till I see the day that it does!” It gave an eerily smug smile before exploding into nothingness. Mitch felt a heavy pressure release from his shoulder when an explosive pain hit his heart. Clutching at his chest, he tried to open the door again. Whatever this was it couldn’t stop him from getting back and making sure Brody was okay. He leaned his face against the door, wincing in pain as he tried to get up the will to try the door again. Then another pain joined in. His right hand was enveloped in flames as a sigil of a flower appeared on it. The two powerful sensations made his head sting with pain. It wouldn’t stop him though. He was about to look for another exit when the pain stopped. He looked down at his hand in confusion. The sigil was now burned permanently into his skin. Mitch shook his head. He couldn’t focus on that right now. Looking back to where the imposter once stood he paused, noticing a new being there. There kneeling before him was a humanoid man shining in tinted silver. His eyes glanced up at Mitch, locking eyes with him. They shone with an unyielding drive and passion. His arms held three celestial spheres on top of his shoulders. They slowly spun around each other.

“You’re awake. I knew you had it in you.” The being studied Mitch for a moment. “I am Atlas.” 

Mitch wasn’t sure whether this thing was friend or foe and so chose not to answer. 

Atlas gave a small annoyed chuckle. “Be that way.”

_ I am thou, thou art I.  _

_ By casting away the falsehoods placed within your heart and opening your eyes to the truth, _

_ I have come from the depths of your soul _

_ to help in your pursuit of justice. _

He gave Mitch another moment to respond, but he still refused. Without another word, Atlas morphed into a white orb and flew towards Mitch who tried to swat it away but failed as it landed into his heart. He wasn’t sure what had just happened when the door slowly opened. Brody stood there teary-eyed, a look of utter relief on her face. 

“Brody, what-” His sentence stopped when he felt Brody’s body hit against him, her arms wrapped tightly around him. She clung onto his shirt as her heart raced, the beat so fast and strong that Mitch could feel it against his chest. 

“Mitch, thank God…” Brody let out a shaky breath. “I was so worried.”

Mitch’s arms still were stuck out stiffly. Slowly, he wrapped her into the hug letting his shoulders relax. He still wasn’t sure how she ended up here too but he was glad that she was safe.

“Brody,” He pulled back, looking her directly in the eyes. “What the hell is going on?” His attention was suddenly drawn away from her when the room started melting around her. Moving in front of her, he put out an arm protectively only to be genuinely confused when they were back in Marsh Park. He felt Brody’s hand reach for his.

“I promise I’ll tell you everything, but we should get back to campus.”

Mitch studied the nervous expression on his girlfriend's face and gave a small nod. “Alright,”

Brody seemed to relax at his word, her expression suddenly changing when a thought struck her. “The brochure!” 

“The what?”

“I’ll explain on the way. Come on!” Brody grabbed his hand and pulled him forward. He stumbled while he tried to keep up. His eyes watched Brody with a relieved smile on his face. He still wasn’t sure what was going on, but he really was thankful that Brody was safe.


	38. A Twisted Game

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Clementine and her friends get pulled into a rift and have to see if luck is really on their side...

“So, why a museum focused on the Civil War?”

Clementine looked back at Prisha who was walking hand in hand with Violet. “Lee says it’s one of the best museums he’s ever been to and I thought that it could be a cool place to visit.” Clementine’s attention was quickly drawn away when she felt Louis’ hand squeeze hers.

“I’m sure it’s gonna be awesome!” Louis flashed his classic charming smile which made Clementine smile in turn. “Right, Vi?”

Violet didn’t hear Louis' question as she stared at her outfit. She had decided to go for more of a comfortable look than something nice. She was wearing a plain grey shirt covered by a dark blue jean vest and some black pants. Violet glanced over at Prisha who was dressed up more. She was wearing a dark teal top that draped beautifully on her and led down to a long skirt. It started off with a darker teal before changing in a ombre effect to lighter greens then white and then once again back to the dark teal. 

“Vi?” Louis’ voice snapped her back into reality.

“What?” She looked over at Louis who for some reason had a playful smile on his face. 

“I said the museum is going to be awesome, right?”

“Yeah, sure.” Violet nodded, stopping when the four had reached the front doors. Louis ran forward, swinging the door open for the others. Each of them gave a small thanks as they entered into the building and made their way towards the front desk to buy passes to get inside. After a few moments all of them had been paid for and they walked towards the first room filled with different displays. The four of them took their time at each exhibit, looking over the stands with information on the war and gazing thoughtfully at each exhibit. When they started to move towards the next room, Violet felt a sudden tug from one of her shoes. Glancing down, she saw that one of her shoelaces had become undone. 

“Wait up,” she mumbled, causing the others to stop as she kneeled down towards her dark blue converse. It only took her a moment to successfully tie her shoe. She looked up only to freeze when she saw Prisha’s back. Violet hadn’t noticed until now that Prisha’s top had a large opening in the back revealing part of it. 

“Violet? Are you okay?” Prisha looked at her with concern. 

Violet couldn’t process what she had seen. It was too overwhelming. “I need to go to the bathroom,” Violet murmured and disappeared into the nearest bathroom before the others could say anything. The three waited in silence for a few moments.

“Is she okay?” Louis leaned over, looking towards the bathrooms.

“I’ll go check on her,” Clementine offered, running off towards the bathrooms. When she opened the bathroom door she was surprised to see Violet staring at the sink with both of her hands gripping the sides of it.

“Vi?”

Violet turned her head to look at her friend. “Clem, shit, sorry. I’m fine.” Violet turned her attention back to the sink. 

“Are you sure?” Clementine stood by her friend who seemed to still be stuck in her head. 

Violet tried to explain why she had ducked into the bathroom but only two words came out of her mouth. “Prisha’s back.”

Clementine quirked an eyebrow. “What?”

“There’s an opening on the back of her top,” Violet whispered, still overwhelmed.

“Oh yeah. I thought you noticed that. It looks good on her.”

“It was just… shit I don’t know, overwhelming.”

Clementine smiled as she looked at Violet. She found it sweet how flustered Violet got about Prisha sometimes. 

“Do you still need a minute?”

“No,” Violet shook her head, pushing off from the sink. “I’m good.”

“Alright, then let’s head back.”

The two headed back and reassured Louis and Prisha that everything was okay. Violet's hand immediately took Prisha’s and the couples continued on to the next room. Clementine started to share all the different facts she knew about the war thanks to her dad. 

“The North actually had more men and materials than the South,” Clementine stated as they walked by a display case detailing the important materials used during the war. “That was a key factor in their victory,”

“I think I read that somewhere, '' Prisha added. “The North had nearly twenty two million people while the South had only around nine million. Not to mention the fact that the North had more factories.”

“And money, railroads, horses, farmland. You name it and the North probably had more of it.” Clementine looked back at Prisha, pleasantly surprised to see that her friend knew some of the facts as well. Everytime Clementine talked about different war trivia, Louis' smile grew. He was practically beaming with pride at how smart and talented his girlfriend was. The four continued into more and more rooms until it got to lunchtime where they made their way outside to grab some food. 

“I’ll go get us some food.” Louis gave Clem a quick kiss on the check before disappearing into the line. 

“I should go help him,” Violet rose up and soon joined her best friend in the line of people waiting for food that was surely more pricey than the quality called for. Prisha and Clementine found a nice, shady table and claimed it for the group while they waited for the others to return. 

“Things seem to be going well with you and Violet,” 

Prisha looked over when she heard Clementine’s statement. A warm smile played on her lips when she looked over at Violet who was busy talking with Louis. 

“They are. Violet’s amazing. Strong, loyal, caring. She has such a deep heart and always listens and respects me. She makes me so happy. Sometimes I’m still shocked that everything worked and that we’re together.” Prisha glanced over at Clementine who had a smile on her face. 

She was glad to see the pure happiness on Prisha’s face. “You two are pretty cute together,” 

Prisha’s face grew hot at Clementine’s words. 

“Thanks. So tell me, how are things with Louis?”

Clementine’s gaze turned to her boyfriend who seemed to be passionately defending some menu item while Violet glared at him with her arms crossed. She gave a small chuckle at the sight before looking back at Prisha.

“They’re great. Louis is such an incredible guy. He’s always there for me, helps lift me up when I’m feeling down and be a shoulder to lean on. Always ready to crack a joke here and there. He’s a total dork but he’s my dork.” Clementine felt her heart grow warmer when she saw Louis make his way back to the table with the food. The four dug into their food, enjoying the conversations that passed around the table while they ate. When they had gotten up and thrown away the trash, Prisha made her way over to the door and held it open for everyone. As soon as they had entered another room, Clementine started up the trivia once more. 

“Juneteenth originated in Galveston, Texas and it’s considered the official day that slavery really ended. Now every June 19th it's celebrated.” Clementine smiled then paused for a moment. “Well, with varying official recognition.”

“Honestly, it should nationally be recognized and made a federal holiday,” Prisha shook her head in annoyance at the American government and its idiocy.

“Hear, hear! America should have already made it a federal holiday. Dumb that they haven’t.” Louis smiled back at his friends.

“They should just toss out one of those shitty federal holidays and give the federal approval to Juneteenth instead,” Violet added. The others nodded in agreement and continued to talk about the importance of the holiday for some time as they walked through the different exhibits. After some time the conversation died down around that subject and the couples continued to make their way through the museum, talking about different things until it was finally time to leave. When they made their way to the front door Louis jogged over to get it, letting Clementine and Violet through. Prisha took the handle and held open the door for Louis who gave a quick thanks before the two returned to the others. 

“Well, I’d say that was a pretty good first double date,” Louis stopped and spun around dramatically.

“I agree,” Prisha commented with a smile. Louis immediately swept Clementine’s hand back in his. 

“We should do it again soon,” Clementine looked back at Prisha and Violet who both seemed more than down for the idea. They soon were back in the car and after a short drive had made it back to campus where Louis dropped off Prisha and Violet then drove off to take Clementine home. Prisha and Violet strolled over to the fountain and sat down beside each other. 

“That was a fun date,” Prisha looked over at her girlfriend with a pleasant smile. 

Violet looked back at Prisha, a smile forming on her lips. “Yeah, it was.” 

The two stared at each other for a moment before Prisha leaned forward, pressing her lips gently against Violet’s. The two felt their hearts race as they kissed. Pulling apart, Prisha looked at Violet with a loving smile. She truly was unbelievably happy with Violet. 

Louis laid on his bed, lazily scrolling through social media while Marlon was busy typing away at his first paper of the semester. Louis let out a tired groan. He was so bored. WIthout a second thought, he opened up DIscord hoping to see something interesting to take his mind off his boredom. Looking through the old messages in the chat on Team Fun though made Louis doubt it was possible.

Bro:  _ Classes are good so far _

DogMan97: _ That’s good _

_ My professor are all pretty cool _

It was nice that everyone had agreed to let Marlon join the Discord. He had been to so many of the recent parties that everyone seemed happy to let him join in. Louis looked at his username, still not sure why he picked it. When he’d asked him, Marlon said, ‘I’m a man and I like dogs.’ Louis still wasn’t sure what the 97 meant though. Marlon had said something about it being an important date or his favorite number. Louis really couldn’t remember. He returned his gaze back to the chat.

Aasim:  _ Mr. Everett is a fantastic history professor if you ever need to take a history class. _

Louis looked over to see who was still online, a mischievous smile appearing on his face when he noticed Prisha’s username.

Sing-us-a-song:  _ @PrishaFacie  _

_ Do you have a problem letting me open doors? _

PrishaFacie:  _ Why was I summoned Louis? _

_ what are you talking about? _

Sing-us-a-song:  _ oh nothing _

_ It just seemed you were determined to open the door just as much if not MORE than me on the double date _

PrishaFacie:  _ This is stupid. _

_ I was just being polite _

Sing-us-a-song:  _ or were you showing off to Violet? _

Aasim:  _ Louis, that doesn’t even make sense. _

Sing-us-a-song:  _ Now that you brought up Violet _

PrishaFacie: _ I didn’t _

_ You did _

Sing-us-a-song:  _ just admit that yo _

_ u were showing off _

Prisha:  _ Louis  _

_ Just because I love her doesnt mean _

Louis shot up on his bed, shocked by the sentence in front of him. Did Prisha just say she loved Violet?

Sing-us-a-song:  _ oh? _

Within seconds Prisha’s previous statement was edited.

PrishaFacie: _ Just because I care for her doesn’t mean opening the door or saying trivia was to impress her. _

_ I- _

_ I’m leaving _

Sing-us-a-song:  _ no wait Prisha _

_ Listen to your heart! _

Aasim:  _ congratulations Louis, for the stupidest fight so far on Discord. _

Sing-us-a-song: _ shut _

Knife2MeetU:  _ oh i thought prisha was on _

Aasim:  _ She just left thanks to Louis. _

Kinfe2MeetU:  _ Dammit Louis  _

Sing-us-a-song: _ but vi  _

_ I _

_ Do you ever think about how shoes are like the armpits of clothes? _

Kinfe2MeetU:  _ what the fuck are you talking about? _

_ I don't have time for this _

_ Got class _

Louis was about to comment again when he noticed an unfamiliar name commenting in the Persona Pals server. He tapped his thumb against the message, opening up the #general chat.

RubyRose:  _ Welcome to the team Mitch _

_ so what's your username stand for? _

OrangeuGlad:  _ is it some sort of code? _

C7H5N3O6:  _ it’s the chemical formula for TNT _

_ Cause I’m the bomb _

Jack-a-Dandy:  _ You are the bomb! _

C7H5N3O6:  _ Thanks Willy _

RubyRose:  _ what about yours Willy? _

Jack-a-Dandy:  _ It’s my persona’s name! _

C7H5N3O6: _ there’s something I need to talk with you all about _

_ Why did you let my twelve year old brother on the team? _

_ What the fuck were you thinking _

Sing-us-a-song: _ he got a persona _

_ And he wanted to join _

OrangeuGlad:  _ we have been doing our best to make sure he’s not in danger.  _

Sing-us-a-song:  _ he’s only been in one sanctum _

_ we’ve been careful _

C7H5N3O6:  _ From now on he only goes into a sanctum when I’m there. Okay WIlly? _

Jack-a-Dandy:  _ ok _

OrangeuGlad: _ That’s fair _

_ We’ll make sure to only take him when you’re there _

RubyRose:  _ that's right _

OrangeuGlad:  _ shit _

_ A rift has opened _

_ I’ll send a message to the assemble chat to let everyone else know. _

Louis jumped up and slammed open the closet door, snatching up the ever growing pile of weapons for the team.

“What are you up to, Lou?”

Louis froze at Marlon’s question. Turning around, Louis gave as confident a smile as he could muster. 

“I’m going LARPing with some of my friends. Can’t get enough of it!” Louis haphazardly grabbed his bathrobe and threw in over his shoulders as if that would make his excuse more convincing. Marlon stared at his best friend for a moment before returning to his laptop. 

“Okay, have fun,”

“Thanks!” Louis slipped out of the room, running while trying to balance the overwhelming amount of weapons in the bag. He looked in the assemble chat and saw that the rift was near Building E. His eyes focused back at the hallway in front of him; he needed to get there as soon as he could. He was one of the last to arrive at the meetup location. Clem, Violet, Brody, Aasim and Ruby all stood there waiting for him to arrive.

“Here! I’m here!” Louis thrust the bag forward, letting his friends grab their weapons. 

“This one’s for you, Ruby,” Louis held out a sling for the redhead. “Oh and these too!” He gave her a pouch full of rocks.”

“Thanks,” Ruby looked questioningly at the weapon choice before glancing over at Violet who gave a half-hearted shrug.

“It’s all we found. That and a slingshot. Those are the choices.”

“Willy, wait up, shit!” Mitch’s voice rang out, causing the others to look and see him hopping as he held one of his feet in pain. Willy’s scurrying screeched to a halt when he looked back at his big brother with wide eyes.

“Mitch, are you okay?”

“I’m fucking fantastic,” Mitch grumbled. “Let’s just get to the team.”

The two brothers stopped in front of the others. All of them looked over with confusion at Mitch when they saw him wielding a shovel.

“What’s the shovel for?” Violet motioned towards it.

“It’s the only weapon I could find.”

“People must’ve been giving you weird looks when you ran across campus,” Aasim noted while studying the shovel.

“It doesn’t matter,” The look on Mitch’s face made it clear that Aasim’s assumption had been right. 

“I think it’s great.” Brody added with an enthusiastic smile. Mitch’s face brightened at his girlfriend’s words.

“Oh, this is for you, Willy,” Louis handed over a slingshot.

Willy let out an excited gasp, cradling his new weapon. 

“Let’s focus. Is everyone ready?” Clementine looked around at her team who all nodded. With her team’s support she took the first step forward. The rift cracked open, swallowing the group in one swift motion. The team stumbled, disorganized for a moment before looking around the room. There wasn’t much here besides some lights shining on them and a single card turned around. 

“What the fuck?”

Clementine looked over at Mitch when he spoke and followed his eyes down to the floor surrounding them. Around them was a giant roulette wheel. The black and white section stood proudly with a series of numbers.

“Gabu?” The creature popped out from the middle of the group.

“Hey, buddy!” Louis flashed a happy smile at Gabu who seemed happy but cautious at the sight of the new people. Willy let out a high-pitched sound when he saw Gabu.

“So cool! Are those tentacles real? Is that a real beanie or part of your head?” Willy bounced excitedly around Gabu who seemed to be growing more and more nervous with each passing second.

“Willy, not now,” Clementine scolded, making Willy’s face fall.

“Right, sorry. You’re really cool.” He gave a shy smile towards Gabu. Suddenly the card in front of them flipped over revealing a person stuck inside it. It was a middle-aged man who pounded against the invisible wall that trapped him inside the card. Clementine moved forward to talk with the man and calm him down when all of the sudden a powerful force pushed Clementine back along with her team. Brody gasped for air, the wind being completely knocked out of her as she fell hard against the roulette wheel.

“Brody!” Mitch tried to run towards her, but the wheel had begun to move. The team spun around and around in the wheel, trying to balance themselves. Louis snatched up Gabu, holding onto him to make sure he didn’t spin out of control. Clementine’s eyes shot over towards where the man stood stuck in the card. A deck of cards appeared behind him, shooting out of both sides of him and circling the roulette wheel. The cards began to spin around as well, flipping and trading places, making it near impossible to keep track of the man. His pleas and screams filled the room more and more with each passing second. 

“Any ideas for a formation?” Louis turned to Aasim who seemed overwhelmed by what was happening.

“No! Sanctums always hold a level of uncertainty and bizarreness to them. But this-” he was cut off when a loud sound came from across the spinner. A large metal ball came barreling down their way. Mitch lunged forward, pushing Willy out of the way just in the nick of time. The others struggled to get out of the way of the ball which spun around the wheel before landing on a white slot. A flash of light shone from the slot before a shadow appeared on it. It slithered at an unimaginable speed towards the others. 

“SHIT!” Violet ran in front of the others, losing her balance for a moment while she pulled off her glove. Whacking hard against her heart, she called upon the embodiment of her true self. 

“Persona!” La Guillotine appeared behind her and swiftly attacked the shadow with such feriousness that the shadow let out a painful cry as it turned into a puddle of goo. Before the team had been able to process what happened, the ball appeared again, this time running directly into Brody. It slammed hard against her body causing saliva to shoot out her mouth as she gasped for air. 

“BRODY!” Ruby ran forward and snatched her friend’s collar, pulling her away from the ball before it crushed her. Mitch dashed over to his girlfriend’s side, his eyes swirling with fear as he looked at her. Without a word, Ruby tore off her glove and slammed it against her heart. “Persona!” Yggdrasil appeared beside her and soon its bloody red sap covered Brody’s body, healing any injuries that may have been inflicted upon her. Ruby opened up her satchel that she was carrying, revealing potions. 

“Everyone grab a potion!” she instructed, her voice heavy with concern. The team passed around the potions, pocketing them away for future use. The ball had halted on another white tile. A shadow moved forth, slower this time. Aasim summoned his persona and sent a wave of flames only for them to bounce back and nearly burn Willy.

“Watch it!” Mitch hissed at Aasim.

“Shadows from the white tiles repel magic.” Aasim noted, making sure the others heard the information.

“Let’s see them repel this!” Mitch yelled, pulling out a cherry bomb from his pocket and tossing it towards the shadow. A large explosion enveloped the shadow, burning it to a crisp and destroying the tile it stood on. 

Louis felt his stomach turn from motion sickness as the roulette wheel spun faster and faster. His grip suddenly slipped, making Gabu fall out with a yelp. 

“Gabu!” Louis cried. The metal ball was rolling towards him. Violet ran forward, grabbing Gabu and rolling to the side while Brody put up an ice barrier to stop the ball from hitting Clementine. The ball had landed on a black tile. An ominous black smoke emitted from it, revealing a shadow who walked creepily on all fours. 

“Jack a Dandy!” Willy’s voice rang out as a blue orb surrounded the shadow before exploding. Its body parts flew around the wheel.

“Holy shit, nice one, Willy!” Mitch smiled proudly at his brother.

The ball reemerged and spun down even faster, crushing Aasim’s foot. A loud crunching sound came from it, only outmatched by the scream of pain coming from Aasim himself. The ball landed right beside him on another white tile. A shadow hovered over him in a matter of seconds. 

“Fucking shit!” Mitch tossed off his glove, slamming it against his heart. “Persona!” Atlas appeared with his silver eyes staring at the shadow with hatred. The three celestial orbs above him stopped, connecting a deadly physical attack against the shadow. Suddenly the Velvet Room attendee’s voice echoed inside Clementine’s head.

I am thou, thou art I

Thou hast acquired a new bond

It shall become the voice of justice

That soothes thine anguish from oppression

With the birth of the Chariot Persona,

One of control and friendship

I have obtained the tongue of truth

That shall lead to balance and new power.

Clementine glanced over at Mitch. His actions had already proven James’ words to be true.

Aasim pulled out the cork on his potion, grimacing when he chugged it, his foot only partially healing from it. Brody summoned Ophelia and immediately healed the rest of the injury. 

Clementine’s head began to spin as she saw the chaos slowly overtaking her team. The ball was back and this time it was moving towards Violet. Violet swore under her breath before throwing Gabu over towards Louis. Using her meat cleaver, she hit the ball and slid safely to the side. The ball landed in the tile that Mitch had destroyed. The team waited anxiously but no shadow appeared from the spot.

“Mitch!” Clementine yelled “ Throw all the bombs you have!”

Mitch gave an excited smile. “With pleasure!” he began tossing cherry bombs, destroying five more tiles before running out. “Fuck, I should’ve brought more.” 

The ball reappeared, shooting around the wheel once more. Louis was able to barely dodge it, his head hitting hard against the side of the wheel. A small trickle of blood dripped down his face. Biting down on the cork, he opened the potion and downed it in one swig.

“Ugh!” His face scrunched up in disgust. “It tastes like old man feet!”

“How many old man feet have you tasted?” Violet moved out of the way of the ball.

“It’s what I’d imagine it tasting like!”

“You’ve imagined it?” Aasim glanced back at Louis with confusion when the ball stopped on a black tile. A shadow crawled forth from the tile, groaning as it lunged forward. Ruby’s eyes burned with anger.

“Psi!” A large orb covered the shadow. Its psychedelic aura was made stronger by the blue, yellow, purple and black that rippled from inside it. It consumed the shadow, leaving no trace of its existence. Louis let out a whistle, impressed by Ruby’s magic. The team kept on their toes, taking out shadows and dodging the ball while making sure Gabu and their fellow teammates were safe. They had just defeated a shadow when the ball reappeared and was heading directly for Louis. He barely had any time to react, tossing Gabu into the safety of Brody’s arms before the ball hit him square in the face.

“Louis!” Clementine’s voice cracked when she saw the event play out in front of her. Louis stumbled. His mouth was covered in blood. The blood trailed down the sides of his face, staining the green shirt he was wearing. Louis turned and gave his best smile to reassure Clem that he was fine when a shadow emerged from behind her. Louis’ eyes widened in fear.

He tried to call out her name only for his throat to be caught with his own blood. Desperately he flung his glove off and hit it against his heart. Liszt appeared immediately.

“ZEO!” Louis’ spell came out distorted but it didn’t change its effectiveness as it burned the shadow to a crisp. Ruby rushed over to Louis and using the majority of her healing to save his shattered mouth. Violet ran forward towards Louis as well, her hands shaking. The rest of the team soon gathered around him. Louis smiled, revealing that one of his back teeth was now missing. He gagged for a minute before spitting, the missing tooth landing in his hands. 

“Gotta save this for the tooth fairy,” Louis tucked away the tooth in the bathrobe he still had on. Clementine wrapped her arms around him, a short sob leaving her lips. Louis didn’t have any time to react before the next ball appeared. 

“According to my calculations, we should only have three more shadows left to deal with,” Aasim stated, getting ready to dodge the deadly ball. The ball went roaring down the wheel and made direct contact with Mitch, sending him flying. 

“Mitch!” Brody’s voice cracked. She tried to reach him but a shadow was already blocking her way. A loud clang came from across the way, signalling the ball had reset. Clementine ran forward, throwing her glove off angrily as she pounded her hand against her heart. Like hell she was going to let this continue. She needed to make sure her team made it out alive and okay. All of them. 

“PERSONA!” Clementine’s voice boomed out, her face twisted in rage. 

Ma’at appeared elegantly behind her. Willing her strongest attack, Clementine unleashed a volley of endless winds, tearing the shadow into shreds. Willy sprinted forward, helping Mitch up to his feet and getting him to drink the potion. Brody felt her heart rate skyrocket. Her hands began to tremble as she desperately tried to regain her composure. She was hyperventilating and she couldn’t stop it. 

_ Everyone is in danger. I can’t help. I- _

Her thoughts were cut off when she felt Gabu reach out and grab her arm. 

“Gabu,” Gabu looked at her with concern. Brody looked down at him. Taking a few deep breaths, she was able to regain some composure. Just in time for the next attack. The ball had landed on a white tile. Violet ran forward alongside Mitch, both of them attacking the shadow viciously, causing it to spurt out blood and collapse into a bloody mess. One shadow left. Then this nightmare would be over. The final ball spun around and around the team who dodged it again and again.

“Why isn’t it stopping?” Willy asked in bewilderment. None of them had an answer to that. Clementine watched the ball, unsure whether it would ever stop. Running in front of its path, she held out her bastard sword. 

“Clem! What are you doing?” Louis asked, the fear palpable on his face. 

“Ending this!” Clementine yelled, slashing her sword down towards the oncoming ball. It clashed heavily against the ball, Clementine’s feet skidding across the floor as she was pushed back. But she refused to yield; her eyes held unbreakable determination within them. The ball screeched to a halt right on the last tile. The shadow appeared by Clem’s feet, but her reflexes were faster than its attack. Jumping away, she dug the sword deep into its skull. The shadow let out a disturbing cry before dissipating into nothingness. Clementine’s heart beat pounded in her ears as she looked around at her team. They were all exhausted, but alive and safe. Looking over, she saw that only one card remained. The middle-aged man pushed his way forward, falling out of the card. 

Clementine knelt beside him. “My name is Clementine,” Her voice held a firm level of calmness and kindness even after the insane battle her and her team had just survived. “What’s your name?”

“Logan, Logan Davin,” the man croaked, giving an appreciative smile while tears filled his eyes. “Thank you. Thank you so much. I was so afraid,” His smile remained on his face as he turned into a ball of light and disappeared. The sanctum slowly melted away while Clementine’s team gathered around her. Gabu slipped out of Brody’s arms and scampered off into the unknown, leaving the team confused by the creature’s choice. Soon they were back in their reality, standing nearby Building E. Without a word, Clementine grabbed Louis and Violet and enveloped them in a tight hug. One by one everyone joined the hug, each of them glad to be back home. Thankful that they had all survived and still had each other. 


	39. The Truth is Never Gone for Long

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Everything seems to be going well as the team works to balance school life and being heroes until someone outside the team discovers the truth...

“Watch out!” Louis yelled, pushing Violet to the side while a shadow’s claw swiped down, tearing the tail of his coat. 

Violet slid on her feet before sprinting forward, embedding her meat cleaver deep into the skull of the shadow and pulling the cleaver all the way down, tearing the shadow apart.

“You alright?” Ruby ran forward, looking over Louis with a concerned expression, checking to see if there was any damage done to him.

“I’m fine,” Louis looked at his coat, his face turning into a frown. “My coat on the other hand… not so much.” He let out a sad sigh.

“That was the last shadow, right?” Ruby glanced over at Violet who still stood in her defensive stance with her eyes scanning the room. 

“It should be,” Violet grumbled as she dropped her stance.

“Then let’s go talk to Penelope,” Louis sprinted over to the door in the far corner of the room that had been locked until this moment. Opening it gently, Louis peeked his head inside. “Penelope?”

A little girl ran forward towards Louis, wrapping her tiny arms around him. Her sniffles were the only sound in the room as Ruby and Violet walked forward. 

“Hey, it’s okay.” Louis looked down at Penelope with his most optimistic smile. “Those scary monsters are gone.”

“Are you sure?” The young girl stared up at Louis with watery eyes.

“Positive,” 

Penelope still wasn’t sure and looked over at Ruby and Violet who both nodded in agreement to Louis’ words. She took a shaky breath before giving the best smile she could muster.

“Okay,” Her gentle smile remained as she changed into a small, bright orb and disappeared. 

“I’m so glad everything went alright!” Ruby’s warm smile returned to her face while the sanctum melted around them. 

“Me too,” Violet whispered, a ghost of a smile on her face that soon disappeared when she looked down at her meat cleaver now covered with blood. “Shit.”

“You can wash it off in the bathroom,” Louis offered.

“I’ll help,” Ruby added. Violet gave a short nod. The two girls gave a silent goodbye to Louis before they made their way into the bathroom. Ruby had gone in first to make sure the coast was clear then let Violet inside. The pair stood in silence as they watched the blood swirl down the sink.

“I’m glad we went for it, y’know,” Violet glanced over at Ruby when she heard her voice. “I’d hate to think what would’ve happened if we didn’t show up in time.”

“You don’t want to know,” The tone in Violet’s voice made Ruby shudder slightly. “Can’t believe a kid had a sanctum.”

“Well, Willy had one, didn’t he?” Ruby held open the door for Violet and the two started heading back in the direction of the dormitories. 

“Still, he was a potential persona user. But Penelope...” Violet’s voice faded out near the end. Ruby looked at her friend. It was clear from one glance that she didn’t want to talk anymore. So Ruby decided it was best for the two to walk in silence on the way back. 

“Well, I got class,” Ruby gestured towards Building I.

“Alright,” Violet gave a small wave as she watched her friend disappear into the building before turning her attention back on the walkway towards the dorms. It only took her a few minutes to get back to her room. Luckily it was a Thursday which meant Erin wasn’t going to be back until 9 pm at the earliest. Violet halfheartedly tossed the meat cleaver on her desk. It bounced on the desk, knocking over Violet’s half eaten bag of wasabi peas. Looking at her phone, she groaned.

_Shit._

It had totally slipped her mind that she had a meeting with Mitch and Clem at two which gave her only ten minutes to get across campus. She haphazardly threw some pieces of paper over the meat cleaver. She could put it back in its spot after the meeting. Violet then turned sharply on her heel and slipped through the door, closing it behind her. As she ran down the hallway she failed to notice that her door hadn’t fully shut. 

Prisha strolled through the dormitory. Her footsteps echoed through the hallway as her eyes searched for the right number. Her smile refused to leave her face; the excitement in her heart wouldn’t allow it. She was on her way to surprise Violet and take her out on a date. Based on what she knew of Violet’s schedule she really didn’t have that many classes on Thursday. Prisha stopped in her tracks when her eyes had found the right door. She was about to knock on the door when she felt something pricking her skin. Looking down, she saw that the bluebird pin Violet had given her had come undone again. Taking a few seconds she readjusted the pin, locking it back in place. She really did love her Christmas gift. The bluebird of happiness; she never would’ve thought anyone would give her a gift with such a heartwarming meaning behind it. Her eyebrow quirked when she looked at the door. For some reason Violet’s door was slightly open. Prisha placed her hand on the doorknob and twisted it. 

“Violet?” Prisha called out but soon saw that the room was empty. Prisha felt her heart drop slightly and was about to leave when something caught her attention out of the corner of her eye. A small shimmer was appearing on Violet’s desk due to the bright sunlight through the window. Prisha walked forward without thinking, her curiosity drawing her nearer to the desk. Prisha pushed aside some of the papers and was shocked at what she found. There laying on the desk was a meat cleaver. Why was there a meat cleaver on Violet’s desk? Prisha examined the cleaver carefully. There seemed to be some sort of scum embedded between the blade and handle, but she couldn’t figure out what it was. Suddenly a thought popped into her mind. Taking off her backpack, she pushed aside some of the items within it to grab the black light. Prisha paused for a moment, wondering about her decision before clicking on the light. Her eyes widened when the light revealed dark black splotches on the meat cleaver. It was practically drenched in it. _Why the hell is there blood on it?_

\----

Violet leaned back in her chair, looking at the many _many_ sketches Mitch had drawn of all the different ideas he had for the team. They ranged from outright stupid and dangerous to some very practical and smart ideas. 

“So, you really think you can make these?” Clementine pointed towards one of the pieces of paper that held a design for some sort of pouch that you could attach to your hip. 

“Totally, and I can make it look way more badass than this,” Mitch said with a proud smile. “I can make one for everyone to hold the potions Ruby and Brody make and another one for my cherry bombs.”

“Sounds good to me. What do you think, Vi?”

Violet gave a shrug. “Sure,”

She wasn’t sure how helpful she was actually being. She was in charge of weapons so it made sense why she would be meeting with the other two, but still... She leaned forward, her eyes scouring the designs. “Got anything that can hold our weapons?”

Mitch’s face brightened at Violet’s words.

“Of course,” He shuffled through the designs before slamming a page on the table which held countless designs for sheaths, holsters and any other weapon carriers one could think of. “Always holding your weapon would be a pain in the ass. If I can find the right materials, I can make these.”

Clementine placed her hand on her chin, thoughtfully looking through the designs. “Can you write out a list of materials you need? I can see what we can do.” 

Mitch’s face took on an excited glow. “Sure,” he looked at his phone and let out a series of swears. “I need to get back to the store.” He didn't wait for the others to respond. He soon was sprinting off campus, carrying the many papers that he had brought with him. 

“Well, I’d say that meeting went well,” Clementine looked over at Violet with a smile. 

Violet gave a small nod. “Yeah, it did.”

“I think Mitch is a great addition to the team,” Clementine grabbed her backpack and unzipped it, pulling out a textbook and a piece of paper. “I’m gonna stay here and catch up on some assignments. You can stay if you want.”

“Nah,” Violet rose up. “I’m gonna head back to my room. That sanctum wore me out.” 

“Thanks for taking care of it,” Clementine’s words were met with a dismissive wave.

“It was nothing. See you later,”

“Okay, see you,” 

Violet turned around and started heading back to her dorm. Her shoulders ached as she walked down the hallway. Sanctums always were a pain in the ass. They really did take everything out of her, but luckily Violet didn’t have any more classes today. That meant she could do whatever she wanted and right now she wanted to take a nap. When she opened the door she expected to find an empty room. Instead she found Prisha sitting on her bed, spinning the meat cleaver back and forth in her hands. Closely examining it as her expression battled between being upset and confused. 

Violet felt her heart stop. She should’ve put away the meat cleaver as soon as she got back. Maybe there was still a way to salvage this. It didn’t necessarily mean that Prisha would find out the truth, right? Taking a step forward, Violet froze when she saw her girlfriend look up at her. 

“Violet, why do you have a meat cleaver in your dorm?” Prisha looked over at Violet, studying her face closely. 

Violet’s head drew a blank. How was she going to come up with a reasonable excuse for a fucking meat cleaver in her room?

“I stole it from the cafeteria on a dare,” Violet mumbled.

Her words didn’t seem to convince Prisha however as she rose up from the bed. “There’s blood on it.” Prisha stated, holding out the meat cleaver. Violet felt her heartbeat quicken. There was no way. She had been sure to wash it. She was positive there wasn’t any blood left.

“How-” Violet began, pausing when Prisha pulled out the black light and shone it on the meat cleaver revealing a dark black that coated the entire blade. 

“This black light shows if an object has blood on it,” 

Violet’s head continued to spiral at Prisha’s words. Her instincts kicked in, making her defensive. “So what? You broke into my room and went through my stuff,” Violet crossed her arms, her face hardening. “And treated my room like some fucking crime scene?”

Prisha’s eyes widened in shock at the accusation before stiffening. “I didn’t break in. Your door was open and this was laying out in the open,” She gestured towards the meat cleaver. “Don’t try and turn this back on me to get out of an explanation.” 

Violet felt her head pound as she tried to figure what to say next. Prisha’s words had caused her emotions to stir within her and without thinking she spoke. 

“Don’t try and fucking catch me in a lie. Why are you even pushing me on this? It’s like you want to catch me in something,” Violet walked forward, her face twisted with anger. “Was that your plan all along? Get close to me and see if you could catch me in a lie? The first day we met, you accused me and my friends of murder yet you didn’t have any proof. This whole relationship, your feelings for me, it was all just bullshit, wasn’t it?” Violet flinched at her own words, regretting them as soon as they had escaped her lips. She had gone too far. Way too far. Looking over at her girlfriend it was clear that the words had cut deep. Prisha’s eyes shone with unshed tears. Her expression was a mixture of devastation and shock. Her breathing was shaky before she started to talk. 

“I can’t believe you would accuse me about that!” Prisha’s voice cracked as she tossed aside the meat cleaver. “You… you were the first person I’ve opened up to in this way.” The tears started to roll down Prisha’s face. Violet took a step forward and reached out her hand.

“Prisha...”

Prisha moved past her and left the room, leaving Violet alone in her dorm. Violet’s face fell as she mentally kicked herself. She had fucked up. She didn’t mean those words that she said to Prisha; she was just caught up in the moment. She knew that Prisha’s feelings and their relationship wasn’t bullshit. How could she have said those things?

Running out the room, Violet hoped that she could reach Prisha in time and apologize to her for all the shitty things she had just said. But when she looked down the hallway Prisha was nowhere to be seen. Why would she be? Violet had said things that she never should have spoken. Words that were hurtful and cruel. Unforgivable lies. Slamming her door, Violet sprinted outside hoping that Clementine was still outside studying and that maybe somehow she could help. It took her a couple minutes to find her friend. When she did, Clementine looked up in shock and concern. 

“Violet? Are you okay?” 

Violet felt her throat burn at Clementine’s question. Her eyes became watery. “I fucked up,” She sat down in a chair and placed her head in her hands. “Prisha found my meat cleaver and it turned into this fight and-” Violet was cut off by her own dry throat causing her words to catch. 

Clementine leaned forward, placing a comforting hand on Violet’s arm. “What happened?”

“I said…” Violet took a deep breath, shaking her head. “ I accused her of lying about her feelings about our relationship. When I’ve been the fucking liar this whole time.” Violet’s hands tightened around her head. 

Clementine was about to speak when she noticed something on the map. “Shit,”

“What?” Violet looked up at her friend and followed her eyes to the map.

“A rift has opened up.” 

Violet’s eyes traveled the map before freezing on the glowing blue spot, her heart stopping at the sight. She stood up abruptly from her spot, knocking over her chair. 

“That’s right outside my dorm. That means… fuck!” Violet’s face was filled with fear as the realization hit her. “Prisha left my dorm. That has to be her sanctum!”

Clementine’s eyes widened in disbelief, but it was clear by the look of terror on Violet’s face that it was true. Clementine dug her phone out, sending an alert to the others on Discord. “Let’s go,”

Violet nodded at Clementine’s words before sprinting over towards the dorms. Her heart was pounding so hard it was making her head spin. 

_Faster, I need to get there faster!_   
Violet’s legs burned as she ran until she stopped in front of the rift that stood near her dorm. She was about to step forward when Clementine’s hand grabbed her arm. 

“Wait, give the others a minute.” Violet was about to refuse but decided against it. The two waited impatiently for a few minutes before Louis and Brody showed up, their faces heavy with concern. 

“Is it true? Is it?” Brody looked over at Clem and Violet. 

“We’re not sure, but we’re going to find out. Is everyone ready?”

“Of course!” Louis answered. Brody gave a nod.

Violet took the first step, causing the rift to break up and wrap the four of them into its vortex, throwing them into yet another sanctum. Violet stumbled on her feet and looked around the room. It was empty except for four tapestries that covered each wall. Each of them were covered with calligraphy which Violet recognized as Prisha’s handwriting. A moment passed when suddenly the ink started to drip down, pooling together before forming a silhouette of a young child. 

“Is that?..” Louis asked, walking forward towards the silhouette which began to walk across the tapestry.

“It’s Prisha.” Violet’s voice shook as her eyes locked on the silhouette. The ink silhouette began to walk down the tapestry. Its eyes wandered, searching for something, before its face dropped. As it continued to walk along the path it ran into a group of three others who looked towards Prisha before turning their backs and leaving her. The young silhouette of Prisha reached out, her hand falling in defeat when they didn’t return. She moved over to the next tapestry. This time she was a bit older. Her walk had an air of confidence to it that was quickly proven empty when another group left her. The ink silhouette slowly seemed more and more defeated as it moved on to the next tapestry, this time aging her up to look around her young teenage years. She left some groups while others along the way left her. Finally she had reached the final tapestry where she took on her normal silhouette and walked alone all the way till she’d nearly reached the end. There she was met with silhouettes they immediately recognized: it was the four of them. The ink silhouette looked hopeful as she ran towards them only to be blocked by an invisible barrier. The four silhouettes stood staring at her before disappearing off the tapestry. 

Violet’s eyes fell when out of the corner of her eye she saw an open door. 

“No...” Violet whispered, sprinting towards the door and slamming it open. It was the same hallway they had all gotten used to seeing which meant…

Violet ran down the hallway to the other door, pulling on it desperately before stopping. Her eyes stared at the door in disbelief. “Prisha,” Violet’s voice cracked on the name. “She’s not prepared for this. I could’ve…” Violet felt the weight give out in her knees. She slid to the ground, her hands reaching out and touching the door. An overwhelming feeling entered the four’s hearts, twisting and expanding with each passing second. Violet clutched her heart. To think that anyone could feel this level of loneliness... Her eyes burned as the tears started to prick them. “I’m sorry,” Violet whispered, placing her forehead against the door. “I’m so sorry. Please, Prisha, _please_ be safe.”

\----

Prisha looked around the room, her face twisted with confusion. She had no idea how she had ended up here. She’d opened this door in hopes of an exit but instead she wound up in an investigation room. Prisha was about to investigate further when she froze, seeing a person who looked just like her standing by the wall on the opposite side of the room.

“Who-” Her voice caught in her throat. 

“Who am I?” the construct looked over at her, with a disturbing smile. “I am you and you are me.”

Prisha shook her head. “That’s not possible.”

The construct scoffed as it strode forward. “ I know everything about you. Your highs and your many lows, your relationships, your insecurities” It stopped in front of Prisha, its face twisting into an even more wicked smile. “So many insecurities.”

Prisha’s head spun as she tried to comprehend what was going on. 

“All those insecurities make up the…” it looked at Prisha with a disappointing gaze, “Person you are.”

“How-”

“You really are good at deceiving yourself, you know,” It walked away and moved the seat closer to Prisha before sitting in it. “A little too good,” The thing let out a sickening chuckle. “After all, do you really think Violet and the rest of them truly accepted you?”

Prisha’s heart stopped at its question. How did it know about Violet and the others?

Its smile grew at her confusion. “They never truly accepted who you really are. Because let’s face it: if you were to show who you really are, they’d all leave you!” The construct’s laughter ran throughout the room. Prisha took a step backwards, her back soon hitting the wall. 

\----

Clementine stared at Violet who was slumped over against the door. Her eyes shone with tears while remaining heavy with defeat. An aura of utter hopeless radiated off Violet. The others looked at each other with concern, unsure what to do. Clementine felt her own guilt sting her heart. She had promised that she would do everything in her power to make sure no one ended up like Sarah again and now here they stood waiting outside Prisha’s sanctum sanctorum. She should’ve told Prisha the truth and filled her in on all the information about personas and sanctum. Maybe then she wouldn’t be in this situation and at a higher risk of ending up stuck in a coma for the rest of her life. She couldn’t lose her friend.

Clementine looked over at Brody and Louis who seemed to be consumed by the same thoughts. It seemed like so much time had passed and yet still the door remained shut. Violet mumbled a phrase over and over again as she laid her head against the door. It was painful to watch and just as painful to wait for their friend. 

_Please Prisha, make it through this._

\----

_They’ll leave me?_

Prisha felt her heart sting at her doppelganger’s statement. Her gaze was turned downwards, staring at the floor. 

Its laughter echoed through the room before suddenly stopping. “Your family, your friends, Violet. They’ll all leave because they’ll finally see who you really are,” The construct stood up and walked over to Prisha, stopping beside her. 

“They’ll realize the truth,” It whispered in her ear. “That you’re not worthy of love,” Prisha’s eyes shot over to the construct. The construct turned to face her. “After all, you already lost one. Violet hates you, or did you forget?” The construct’s voice changed to one that caused Prisha’s heart to stop. “This whole relationship, your feelings for me, it was all just bullshit, wasn’t it!?!” Violet’s voice made Prisha turn away, stumbling backwards. The words cut even deeper than before. 

“Just accept the fact that no one will ever accept who you truly are. Violet left you,” It began to walk towards the table. “Soon your so-called friends will ditch you too. It’s happened before,“ The construct turned around, suddenly locking eyes with Prisha. “So why would this time be any different!” A contract appeared on the table beside the construct. “It’s time you face the truth, that you are and will forever be alone.” The construct motioned towards the contract. “So just admit it: sign it.”

Prisha felt empty as she walked forward towards the table. They were right. Why would this time be any different? Everyone would leave her… they always did. Lifting up the quill, she began to write her name. The blood red ink seeped through the paper. She had written the first three letters of her name when she felt something prick against her skin. Looking down, she noticed that the pin had become undone again. Her mind was suddenly bombarded with memories. Her time with Violet looking at the stars, singing with Louis, all the conversations she’d had with Clementine, the peaceful walks with Brody, playing Scrabble with Aasim, the many parties that her friends had thrown. All those memories weren't fake. They had accepted her even after the rocky first encounter. They’d seen who she was and accepted her anyway. The image of Violet’s soft smile played in Prisha’s mind, her words echoing through her mind. “It’s supposed to be a symbol of happiness… because you make me happy.”

All those moments were true. She threw aside the quill, causing the sinister smile on the construct’s face to immediately disappear.

“No, they do accept me. This time will be different,” Prisha gripped her heart. “I know it will be. They accept me for my true self just as I have accepted them!” 

The construct took a shaky step back as a white orb consumed its chest. It glared at Prisha before running forward. Grabbing both of her shoulders, it slowly leaned forward, whispering one final thing in her ear. “History says otherwise, just wait and see. One day you’ll look up and see that you are all alone.” 

Prisha stepped away from the construct. 

“You’re the one who’s alone.”

The construct broke out into a fit of laughter, its gaze burning into Prisha. Its body was becoming covered in cracks. Its laughter only stopped when it had exploded, leaving nothing in its place. Prisha looked around the room; now she needed to find a way out of here. She froze when an unbearable pain entered her heart. Her hand shot up to try and help even though it was fruitless. She crumbled forward, holding onto the desk. Was she having a heart attack? Why was this happening? Her questions were thrown off when a second pain joined in. A searing pain consumed her hand while flames erupted from it, creating a sigil with a jasione. There had to be a way to put out the fire, right? Prisha tried her best to quench the flames with her other hand but to no avail. They continued to burn as painfully and as brightly as ever until in a moment they stopped. Prisha looked at her hand with confused curiosity and moved to push back the few strands of hair that had fallen on her face when she noticed another being was in the room. She was baffled at the realization. The feminine being was made out of flames. Many shades of yellow, red and orange swirled around its body. The flames were licking around the air surrounding her. Beneath her feet were cracks creating a chasm underneath her. She had an aura that demanded respect from whoever laid eyes upon her. 

“I see that you are finally awake.” She locked eyes with Prisha who stood in awe of the being.

“What do you mean finally awake?”

“To your true self. I am Sita.” She didn’t not wait for Prisha’s response instead continuing with her own words.

_I am thou, thou art I._

_By casting away the falsehoods placed within your heart and opening your eyes to the truth,_

_I have come from the depths of your soul_

_to help in your pursuit of justice._

“Now let us burn a path of our own to a brighter tomorrow.” She stated proudly before turning into a ball of light and rushing into Prisha’s heart. Prisha’s mind was spinning with endless questions when she heard the sound of the door being slammed open. When she had turned to see who had opened the door, she was met with a hug that sent her back a few steps. Looking down, she was surprised to see Violet there. Her arms were tightly wrapped around Prisha. Short, shaky sobs escaped her lips with each passing second. 

“Prisha, I…” Violet took a shaky breath. “Shit, I’m so sorry. For everything. Those words I said weren’t true. I-” Violet paused when Prisha’s arms wrapped around her. She felt the weight of Prisha’s head as it gently laid on top of Violet’s. 

“Violet, you came for me?” Prisha felt tears begin to roll down her face once again. 

“Of course. I’ll explain everything, just... I’m really happy you’re safe. You’re safe.” Violet’s voice was muffled against Prisha’s shoulder, but the tone made it clear how relieved she was. Prisha looked down at Violet and locked eyes with her. Violet was so overcome with all of her emotions. Prisha looked in her girlfriend’s eyes and saw the love and concern in them. The fear and pain. “I love you,” Violet whispered to which Prisha’s eyes widened as she released from the hug. Violet’s eyes softened as she rubbed the side of her arm unsure how Prisha may react to it. Prisha felt adrenaline rush through her veins when the next few words escaped her lips.“I love you too.”

Prisha felt her heart soar in that moment. Without a second though she cupped Violet’s face and captured her lips in a soft but passionate kiss. Violet leaned into the kiss, her hands reaching up to cup Prisha’s face. Everything else seemed to stop in that moment as Prisha’s heart was filled with pure bliss. When she pulled away she looked at Violet who was watching her with such a tender and loving gaze. Prisha returned the smile and reached out, grasping both of Violet’s hands. 

“Holy shit!” Louis’ voice caused Prisha to look over in confusion before her eyes widened in shock. There standing by the doorway were Louis, Brody and Clem who all looked extremely relieved that Prisha was safe as well as happy for the couple. 

“I want to say I’m sorry, Prisha,” Clementine stepped forward. “We haven’t been completely honest with you. We were involved with the Saint Johns’ killers because we fought them.” Prisha looked utterly confused by Clementine’s statement. As Clementine began to explain the world of personas and sanctums, Prisha’s sanctum disappeared, leaving them back in their reality. Ruby and Aasim stood there with shocked and concerned expressions. 

“We tried to get here as fast as we could,” Aasim started.

“But when we got here, the rift was locked up tight.” Ruby said with a face full of regret. 

“That’s okay. Prisha was able to get through her awakening,” Clementine gestured towards Prisha. Everyone talked for a few minutes, all happy that everything had turned out okay when Brody spoke up.

“I want to say sorry too, Prisha. I told Vi to lie to you so you wouldn’t be involved in the more dangerous sides in our lives.” Brody had an apologetic expression on her face as she made her way forward. 

“This is a lot to take in,” Prisha touched the side of her head. “But I think I’m getting it.” She looked over at them with a proud and confident smirk. “So what you’re saying is that my suspicions were right from the beginning.”

Suddenly James’ voice rang throughout Clementine’s head 

I am thou, thou art I 

Thou hast acquired a new bond

It shall become the voice of justice

That soothes thine anguish from oppression

With the birth of the Justice Persona,

One of fairness and equality

I have obtained the tongue of truth

That shall lead to balance and new power.

Clementine looked at Prisha with a smile.

_Justice. That seems fitting._

Before any of them could reply to Prisha’s statement, Prisha’s body suddenly went limp. Violet caught her girlfriend, a worried expression on her face while the others ran forward. 

“She should be fine. A lot of us passed out after our awakening,” Clementine looked over at Violet, hoping her reassurance was working. Violet gave a shaky nod. “Yeah, okay. We need to put her somewhere safe.”

“Oh, how about your room?” Louis suggested to which the others all agreed. They all helped Violet to carry Prisha through the door and place her on her bed.

“Wow, a teddy bear, Vi? I didn’t think you were the type.” Louis gave a playful smile as he waved around Violet’s small brown teddy bear.

“Shut up,” Violet snatched back the teddy bear, placing it on her desk before grabbing the chair. She put it by the bed and sat down. 

The other excused themselves, leaving only Violet and Louis in the room along with Prisha. 

Silently Louis grabbed another chair and placed it beside Violet. He sat down with a gentle smile.

“You don’t have to stay.” Violet mumbled, her attention on her girlfriend.

“I want to,” 

Violet felt happy at Louis’ words. The pair sat there, talking to distract each other as they waited for Prisha to wake up. Violet looked over at Prisha, a wave of comfort washing over her. Prisha was safe.


	40. Close But Distant

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Prisha and the others notices that something is off with Violet.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> (by Linnea)

Violet felt her hand shake as she slowly lifted it towards the door. She carefully reached out to the sigil-embedded doorknob. With each passing second her heartbeat quickened; the only sound that she could hear was its pounding in her eardrums. But as soon as her hand neared the doorknob, the door suddenly changed. Mildew and rot covered every inch of it, causing Violet’s heart to stop.  _ No, this can’t be real.  _ Violet’s eyes widened in horror when the door fell with a sickening thud revealing what was behind it. There on the ground lay Prisha’s body. Without a second thought Violet sprinted forward before collapsing on her knees. 

“Prisha,” Violet’s hand grasped one of Prisha’s shoulders, “Get up, please.” She softly shook Prisha as tears filled her eyes. “Please, get up. Get up!” She kept shaking her, unwilling to accept the truth that she had failed the awakening until a familiar voice broke through.

“Violet,” Violet’s eyes shot up as she sat up on her bed. Her roommate Erin was standing by the doorway, her braided hair swayed as she pushed up her glasses. A sympathetic smile revealed her navy blue braces. “You overslept,” 

“Shit,” Violet groggily threw on a hoodie and her sneakers, hopping on one foot while she snatched her backpack. Giving a quick thanks to her roommate, Violet was off like a shot. She couldn’t afford to miss any classes. Not when she could be called upon to fight in a sanctum at any moment and be forced to take the absences. Her footsteps echoed through the quiet hallway before she pushed open the door to the staircase. It was the same dream, every night for the last three days. She knew Prisha was okay, but it didn’t make the dream seem any less real. It had almost become reality after all. 

By the time she had reached the classroom, the professor had just started taking attendance. Quietly slipping into an empty chair, Violet pulled out her notebook. She wasn’t sure why though; it wasn’t like she took many notes for this class anyway. The professor’s voice was quickly drowned out by Violet’s mind as she thought about how hectic the semester was going to be. It was totally going to kick her ass. Not only did she have a shit ton of classes, but persona quests with her best friends… and now her girlfriend too. Violet’s stomach turned with guilt. 

Prisha didn’t seem mad at her for what she had done, but it didn’t change the fact that Violet still felt guilty. She kept remembering all the times she lied and hid things from Prisha only for it to blow up in her face causing a massive fight, hurtful words and putting Prisha in danger. Violet’s mind was in haze when the professor’s voice reentered it. 

“That’s all for today. Be sure to finish the paper by Friday,” The class immediately got up at the professor’s words, making their way outside for the next part of their day. Violet followed suit, lazily tossing her backpack over her shoulders as she went down the stairs. 

Suddenly she was greeted by some familiar faces. Louis’ bright smile covered his face as soon as he noticed Violet. He gave a friendly wave over her way while his other hand was gently wrapped around Clementine. Next to the couple stood Prisha whose face held a warm expression when her eyes locked with Violet’s. 

“What are you guys doing here?” Violet walked over to stand beside Prisha. 

“We just got out of our classes and thought it would be fun to hang out for a bit,” Clementine stated. 

“Vi, it will now finally be time that I beat you at Soul Calibur!” Louis added dramatically. 

“You won’t win,” Violet gave a smirk in Louis’ direction to which Louis tutted his finger.

“Oh, but I’ve been practicing. Marlon and I have been challenging each other to many a match.”

“Anyway, we should probably head out now,”Clementine motioned for the others to follow as she and Louis took the lead. Prisha and Violet followed close behind, their hands softly brushing against each other while they walked. Violet slowly reached out her hand to intertwine with Prisha’s when she froze. A guilty feeling filled her chest before she dropped her hand back down to her side. Ever since the day Prisha got pulled into her sanctum, Violet wanted to be by her side at all times. Holding her hand, hugging her... but every time she felt compelled to, her guilt said otherwise. Violet’s thoughts continued to consume her attention until she felt a warmth covering her hand. Looking down, she saw that Prisha’s hand was now holding hers. Violet looked over at Prisha who looked back at her with a smile. 

“So, how was class today?” Clementine looked over her shoulder back at Prisha and Violet.

“Okay,” Violet gave a halfhearted shrug. She couldn’t tell them a single thing that the lecture had covered today but that wasn’t anything unusual. 

“My class went well. I need to drop by the library later tonight to get a few books, but it shouldn’t be a big deal,” Prisha answered.

“If you want, I could stop by after we go to the arcade and get them for you,” 

Prisha looked over at Violet when she offered. “Are you sure?”

“Yeah, it’s no problem.” It felt like the least she could do for Prisha. Helping her with stuff and making sure she was okay seemed to help ease Violet’s conscience.

Prisha thought about the offer for a moment only to be cut off when Louis spoke up.

“We can focus on that later. For now we need to prepare for fun,” Everyone seemed to agree with Louis' statement. The four of them moved onto other topics, pulling away from the earlier conversation. 

But for some reason it wouldn’t leave Prisha’s mind. 

\-----

“Hold on,” Ruby warned as she took a sharp right turn onto the street. Brody held on the roof handle, her knuckles white from her grip. Prisha carefully held the leftovers from lunch as her body swayed to the right with the turn. “Sorry about that,” Ruby looked back in with the car mirror. 

“It’s quite alright,” Prisha reassured, rearranging the leftovers on her lap. The minivan was silent for a minute, the only sound the country music playing on the radio and Ruby’s soft humming as she drove along. Brody and Ruby had asked Prisha if she would like to join them for lunch and visit the hospital. Prisha was confused at first but soon remembered who they would be visiting. She’d heard both tales of Ms. Martin and Sarah and thought it would be respectful to visit. The lunch had been quite nice; the girls kept busy talking about their classes and different things until it was time to go. Now here they were on their way to the hospital, the conversations from their meal over and done with. 

“So, I’ve been meaning to ask but wasn’t sure if it was my place,” Ruby started as she stopped at a stop sign. “How are things going with you and Violet?” 

Prisha looked up at the rearview mirror, noticing something hidden within Ruby’s eyes. Prisha also noticed the difference in Brody's body language. It was fair that they were unsure considering what had happened only five days ago. 

“Things are...” Prisha paused, trying to find the right words, “Going alright?”

“Alright?” Brody asked before feeling uneasy about whether she was stepping into something she shouldn’t. 

But Prisha didn’t seem to mind. In fact it seemed like she was glad to talk with them. “Well, ever since that day I got my persona, Violet’s been acting odd. It’s like she’s constantly with me by my side but each time that she there she feels… distant.” Prisha shifted in her seat. 

“Well, I’m sure she just feels awkward and stuff after everything that’s happened. It’s only natural,” Ruby gave a reassuring smile. 

It seemed ineffective though as Prisha’s eyes turned sad. “I suppose that’s true.”

“Just give it time. Violet can be stubborn, but everything will pan out.”

“It makes sense,” Brody leaned forward to turn down the music so the three of them could focus on the conversation. “I’m sure she’s just feeling guilty for all the lies she told you.”

Prisha remained silent at Brody’s statement. She still couldn’t believe that all this time Violet had been lying to her. All those times that she had told her that she had an emergency come up or that she had a meeting with one of her professors it was a lie. After hearing what Violet had to say after the sanctum sanctorum along with Clementine and the others’ explanations, she’d tried to understand the motives behind their actions. It still hurt though. Why didn’t Violet just tell her the truth from the start? Then things could’ve been different. 

Brody looked over her shoulder with concern. “Violet was just trying to do what she thought was right so I’m sure she feels bad with how things turned out. It doesn’t help that the scar on her face reminds her of the lies.”

Prisha’s eyes shot up at the last part of Brody’s sentence. “The scar on her chin? What do you mean it reminds her of the lies?”   
Brody quickly looked away, kicking herself internally for spilling information that wasn’t hers to share.

“I-” Brody paused. “Oh, here we are!” After a minute Ruby parked her minivan. Brody carried a bouquet of sunflowers while Ruby gently held a small bouquet of yellow roses. 

Prisha walked beside the other two and glanced at the flowers. “If you’d like, I could carry a bouquet,” She offered out her arm, but Ruby shook her head.

“Aww, Sug,it’s nice of you to offer, but we’ve got it.” 

Brody nodded in agreement as the three made their way towards Ms. Martin’s door. Prisha stepped forward and opened the door for the other two. The three of them were immediately greeted by a warm smile from Ms. Martin although her face was also lined with exhaustion.

“Ruby! And Brody! It’s so nice to see you two again.”

“It’s great to see you too, Ms. Martin. You look great today,” Brody moved over towards the bed while Ruby began the process of changing out the wilted flowers. 

“We got you some new flowers today.” Ruby’s face took on a bright smile that was clearly for show. 

“They look lovely. I simply love yellow roses!” Ms. Martin looked at the flowers with a happy smile before she noticed the third guest in her room. “Oh, I’m sorry, I didn’t notice you there. You must be one of Ruby or Brody’s friends, right?”

“No need to apologize, and yes, they both are dear friends of mine,” 

Ms. Martin’s eyes seemed to brighten at her words. “Well it’s nice to meet you…” 

“Prisha. Prisha Chakyar.” Prisha moved closer towards the bed.

“Prisha. That’s a beautiful name.”

“Thank you,” Prisha smiled, surprised by the compliment. 

“Oh, before we forget we should go visit Sarah. Come on, Prisha,” Brody grabbed Prisha’s hand and led her out of the room, hoping to give Ruby some more personal time with Ms. Martin. When they were a fair distance away, she let go of Prisha’s hand. “Sorry, just wanna make sure Ruby got some time on her own,”

“I understand. So Sarah, is she-”

“The girl who failed her awakening,” Brody finished Prisha’s question. “Yeah, it happened in November.”

Prisha nodded, her gaze falling to her feet while the pair walked towards the door. Brody silently opened the door while struggling to hold onto the bouquet. Prisha tried to help after failing to notice right away, but Brody seemed to open the door just fine. The room was empty except for a vase of withered sunflowers and a girl with dark black hair. The monitor beside her gave a constant beeping sound, signaling that her heart rate and other vitals were doing okay. 

Prisha stared in silence as Brody replaced the flowers. “So, is she stuck in a coma for the foreseeable future?”

Brody looked up from her task and gave a sad nod. “That’s right. She’s the first we’ve lost that way. We didn’t know what would happen if you ended up believing in your construct’s lies. But now we do. Doctors say it’s unclear if she’ll ever wake up again. We come and visit whenever we can, hoping to brighten up her day.” Brody gave a small smile that disappeared when she took a seat. 

Quietly, Prisha followed her and sat down beside her, her eyes never leaving Sarah.  _ So this is what would’ve happened if I failed.  _ Prisha looked at Sarah before her gaze turned up to the monitor. This is what Violet had feared would happen to her. It was starting to become clearer why she would want to hide the world of personas from Prisha in order for her to be safe. But still, why was she being so distant? Was it really what Brody had said? Did she feel guilty? Prisha’s eyes wandered around the room as her thoughts continued to dance around her head. Perhaps it was time that she asked Violet herself.

\-----

Clementine felt her drink spill out of her mouth as she burst out laughing at Louis’ joke.

Louis held his sides in laughter before flashing an apologetic grin. “I’m sorry, Clem,” He held out a napkin for her. 

Playfully slapping his arm, Clementine accepted it and began to wipe down her shirt when out of the corner of her eye she noticed Violet running towards them.

By the time that she got to them she was wheezing, a thin line of sweat dripping down her brow. Her hands were on her knees as she looked up at them. “Have either of you seen Prisha?” She stood up while her chest heaved.

Louis gave a playful smile and was about to tease her when he saw the look in her eyes. She seemed really worried. Heavy bags were prominent under her eyes. Had she been sleeping well?

“She’s okay, Vi. She just went to grab some lunch with Ruby and Brody,” Clementine motioned towards the empty seat. “Why don’t you sit down with us for a moment?” 

Violet looked at the chair with a hesitant expression before she took the seat. Her foot tapped restlessly under the table. 

“So,” Louis leaned forward on his elbows, “Why are you looking for Prisha?” 

Violet looked over at her best friend with a skeptical eye but it soon faded away. “I just want to make sure she’s okay,” she grumbled, crossing her arms as she leaned back.

“I’m sure she is. It’s not like she’s going to disappear if you’re not with her,” 

Violet’s face fell at Clementine’s words. “I know,” Violet whispered in a fragile tone before she stood up, her chair sliding against the floor. “I have to go,”

“But you just got here,” Louis whined. 

Violet looked at Clementine and Louis for a moment before she turned sharply on her heel, walking away without a second glance or word. 

Clementine and Louis shared a worried look. Something was off with her.

\-----

A few days had passed when Clementine got an alert on her phone from Discord. It was from Mitch telling everyone to show up at his house at three. When the time rolled around the group had gathered around his front door. 

“Thanks for showing up,” Mitch grunted as he pulled open the garage, revealing a long table littered with different weapons. 

“Mitch and I have been working on a few designs this last week for weapons that would be more effective in sanctums,” Prisha stated as she made her way to stand by Mitch behind the table. “I heard from Clem and Ruby that the effectiveness that medicinal herbs and toy weapons have when used in a sanctum is magnified. It made me wonder if we used stronger materials to make the weapons, perhaps-”

“Perhaps the weapons’ strength would increase,” Aasim finished

Prisha nodded. “That’s right. Mitch made some designs and together this is what we constructed,” Prisha gestured towards the table. On it were an array of weapons. Some daggers, slings, swords, a bo staff. You name it and most likely something of its kind was on the table. 

“Pick whichever one you want,” Mitch directed.

Slowly the group moved forward. Ruby and WIlly immediately went for the weapons that they had already used previously. Ruby’s now improved sling was made of fine leather with a holster that let the sling easily be attached and detached from her hip. Willy dramatically pulled back his slingshot and made a loud explosion sound when he released. The springiness of it was far better than before. Clementine looked around thoughtfully at the table before her eyes fell on the bastard sword. Taking it in both of her hands, she went into her battle stance. Instead of being child-sized it was proportioned to her height, and the wood used to make it felt heavier and sturdier. It seemed as if the sword had a perfect balance in her hands. 

“We tried to make improvements on all the weapons you said you previously used,” Prisha added when she looked towards Clementine. 

“I can tell,” Clementine examined the bastard sword with a smile. “It’s good work.” 

Prisha’s and Mitch’s faces beamed with happiness before they high fived. 

“Oh shit, that reminds me,” Mitch ran into the depths of his garage, cursing as he dug around in the corner. He soon returned with a bunch of leather pouches. “I finally got some of the leather pouches done for potions and bombs and shit,”

Brody walked forward and picked one up “They look really well-made.”

“I made them myself!” Mitch declared proudly. 

Prisha looked around, noticing that everyone had gotten their weapons except for Louis and Violet. “Are there any weapons that you like?” 

Violet looked up at Prisha’s question. She gave a shrug. “I don’t know, think I might just stick with my meat cleaver for now,” 

Prisha seemed a bit sad at her words. “Oh, alright,” 

Violet was about to say something when Louis let out a groan. 

“What’s wrong, Lou?” Clementine placed down her weapon.

“I’m not forming a connection with any of the weapons,” Louis’ face took on a small pout.

“Really? A connection?” Violet crossed her arms while she looked towards him.

“Yeah, a connection. How else am I supposed to know that I found the right weapon for me?”

“Just fucking swing it,” Violet grumbled with annoyance. 

But Louis wouldn’t listen. He kept searching for that special connection with each weapon he picked up, but had no luck.

After about a half hour of searching, the team decided it would be best to call it a day. There were still questions about where they should place their weapons for safekeeping and how much of an improvement the adjustments would make, but it would have to wait for another day. The group soon went their separate ways, each of them moving towards another part of their day. 

\----

Clementine lazily spun the pen around her finger. She knew it was important to do homework, but that didn’t make it any less boring. She stared down blankly at the textbook in front of her when she noticed a small blue light emitting from the map. Clementine’s smile grew for a split second before she scolded herself. This wasn’t a game; someone was in trouble. Pulling out her phone and sending a quick message on Discord, she snatched up her sword and made her way towards Building I. 

She was the first to arrive and waited for around ten minutes before Ruby, Violet and Prisha showed up, each of them wielding their weapon. Ruby quickly handed out a potion for each of them before Clementine asked if they were prepared. After confirmation, she stepped forward, opening the rift that pulled them into the other realm. All of them stumbled on their feet for a moment before they looked around. 

It looked as if they were in a giant kennel. The walls were covered from head to toe in “Missing Dog” flyers with a German Shepherd looking back at them. The dog’s tongue stuck out of his mouth as he happily looked at them from the photo. On the flier was the dog’s name: Duke. 

Clementine looked over at Prisha for a moment. She seemed to be in absolute awe at what was happening. Her eyes scanned every inch of the room, an expression of disbelief on her face. Clementine was about to ask her how she was handling it when she noticed Gabu standing by a cage. His tentacle hands were grasping someone as he tried to comfort them. His gaze turned back when he heard her walking forward. “Gabu!” He ran forward and hugged Clementine’s legs.

“Hey there, buddy. Are you helping them out?” Clementine kneeled down to Gabu’s level.

“Gabu!” he exclaimed proudly, nodding his head up and down.

“That’s real good,” Ruby gave a warm smile while Violet and Prisha made their way forward.

Prisha looked down at the creature with a mixture of curiosity and utter disbelief. 

“Unbelievable, “Prisha whispered while she looked at Gabu.

“Oh, yeah. Gabu, this is Prisha. She's a new member of our team. Prisha, this is Gabu, our friend and helper.”

Gabu seemed embarrassed by the compliment before looking up at Prisha. 

Prisha knelt down and offered her hand. “Nice to meet you, Gabu,”

Gabu was about to offer his hand when an unearthly sound echoed throughout the room. It sounded like a pained animal cry mixed with a deep, throaty howl that sounded more akin to a human’s voice. The team immediately drew out their weapons, each of them on edge thanks to the sound. It didn’t seem like there would be time to check on the sanctum’s owner.

“Gabu, I need you to stay with the person you were comforting. Can you do that?” Clementine looked down at Gabu who nodded in understanding. 

“Gabu!” 

Before she could thank him, a slithering sound emerged from the missing posters. The black goop congealed together then fell to the floor. Swirling and swinging around, it soon took the shape of a dog. It let out a terrifying growl that seemed to cause everyone’s hair to stand up on their arms. Clementine wielded the bastard sword in front of her, her hands shaking more and more with each second.  _ Why did it have to be dogs? _ The image of the dog who attacked her as a child, its teeth around her arm, entered Clementine’s mind and refused to leave.

“Clem,” Ruby looked over with concern.

“I’m okay,” Clementine forced a smile. “Let’s get started.”

Violet looked unconvinced by her words. Suddenly the dog lunged forward towards Prisha who swung out her dagger. It was clear within seconds that her weapon wasn’t the right fit for her. Violet cursed frantically under her breath and dashed forward. Swinging the meat cleaver, she lodged it into the shadow’s skull before she kicked it off. Like hell was she going to let anything bad happen to Prisha. Tearing off her glove, she slammed it against her heart. “Persona!” 

La Guillotine appeared behind her. Violet’s hair swayed for a moment before she dashed forward to the next set of shadows. It didn’t take long for the others to notice the difference in Violet’s fighting style. It was sloppy and reckless. With every good swing that connected to a shadow, another shadow would get in an attack on her. Their teeth tore against Violet’s skin, but she didn’t seem to care. Letting out an annoyed hiss, she pushed a shadow back against the wall. 

Ruby’s persona was soon summoned. Its blood-like sap soon covered Violet, healing the numerous dog bites on her body. Prisha stared in fear at the number of shadows that were overwhelming her girlfriend. Quickly she grabbed her glove and tossed it aside. Slamming it against her own heart, she called forth Sita. “Persona!” 

The fiery being appeared behind her, the earth cracking more and more beneath her with each passing second. Sita’s eyes were fierce as Prisha called forth her first attack. 

“Kouha!” Prisha yelled, gesturing towards the first shadow within her sights. The earth beneath Sita shattered as fire spilled from its depths. The shadow that Prisha had marked froze. Slowly its body began to glow with an eerily bright light, cracks consuming it more and more with each passing second. Suddenly it exploded, leaving nothing but dust. Violet looked back in shock and awe at Prisha’s power. 

“Watch out!” Ruby warned while she threw a rock with her sling. The rock whizzed past Violet’s ear, hitting a shadow square in the forehead. It let out a terrifying yelp before turning into a pile of slime. 

Even with the help of the others, Violet still seemed to be getting more and more caught up in making sure nothing came near them. More and more of the shadow mutts’ jaws clenched on Violet’s limbs. Ruby was about to heal her yet again when Clementine put a hand on her shoulder. Ruby looked back with confusion as Clementine shook her head. Taking a long deep breath, Clementine dashed forward, slicing a shadow mere inches from Violet’s neck. 

“Don’t be an idiot,” Clementine hissed in Violet’s ear. She swung her blade out, flicking off the shadow’s blood. Violet glared back at the leader. 

“Ruby! Don’t heal Violet, no matter what!” 

Everyone looked shocked by Clementine’s instruction. 

Clementine slammed her potion against Violet’s chest. “You only get two potions. So don’t keep pulling the same bullshit. If you don’t trust us and act recklessly, not only will you get yourself in danger but everyone else.”

Violet’s eyes widened before they hardened. She snatched the potion without a word, tossing it inside her pouch. The bites on her arms stung as she swung towards the next shadow. After a few minutes, Violet’s fighting began to return to normal. She took on enemies and guided their attention away from the others while her teammates landed the finishing blow. Violet bit down on the cork and opened a potion. Chugging both of them, she let out a disgusted sound before all of her wounds healed up. 

Giving Violet a chance to breathe and step back, Clementine took over the front, her hands still shaking from fear. Ruby gave healing and support and Prisha landed light magic attacks one after another. Soon there was only one shadow left. 

Violet ran forward at the same time the shadow did. “La Guillotine!” she shouted, motioning towards the shadow. Its teeth were out and nearing Violet's throat. Before it could reach however, the guillotine slammed down, cutting off the shadow’s head which rolled by Violet’s feet before dissipating. 

“Is everyone alright?” Clementine stood leaning on her bastard sword, a nervous sweat covering her.

“We’re fine,” Prisha walked towards the leader, “But what about you?”

“Not good with dogs… bad experience once,” Clementine whispered while her body shook slightly. “No time to focus on that though,” Clementine walked towards the cell where a young teen was curled up in the corner. “Hey there. My name’s Clementine. What’s your name?”

The young teen’s brown eyes shot up before cowering behind his knees again. “Oliver,” the young teen took a breath. “Oliver Caddick. T-thank you for saving me. I was just… my dog.”

Clementine put a reassuring hand on his shoulder. “It’s alright,”

Oliver nodded before her turned into a bright light and disappeared. The sanctum quickly followed suit, melting around the persona users. The four stood in silence for a minute before Clementine walked towards Violet. “Sorry I had to be tough on you.”

Violet shook her head, her eyes focusing on the ground in front of her. “I get it.” 

“As long as we’re safe, that’s what matters,” Ruby’s comforting tone made everyone feel more relaxed. “I need to get going though. I got a class in twenty.”

“Right, I should get going too,” Clementine added. “Thanks for your hard work,” She looked towards Prisha with a smile. “You did great for your first sanctum.”

“Thank you,” Prisha returned the smile though it quickly disappeared. It was clear that her mind was on other matters. 

After a few minutes Clementine and Ruby had left, leaving Violet and Prisha. Violet was about to walk away when Prisha spoke up.

“Violet, can we talk?”

Violet looked over at her girlfriend, immediately picking up on the aura of her question. Giving a short nod, she walked with Prisha as the two headed over towards Prisha’s apartment. 

\-----

When they entered, Prisha walked over towards her bed and sat down on it, motioning Violet to join her. Violet was reluctant for a second but soon sat beside her. The couple sat in awkward silence for a minute before Prisha broke it. 

“You’ve been acting weird lately,” Prisha began, shifting on her bed, ”And it's clear it was affecting you in the sanctum too. If it would help, you could talk to me about it.”

Violet looked at her for a second, trying to figure out what she wanted to do. Her face fell when she finally decided to speak. 

“I feel really shitty about how I treated you. All the lies I told and the secrets I kept hidden. I told myself it was to keep you safe, but in the end you got hurt anyway,” Violet’s voice became shaky, her eyes prickling with tears. “Not only that, I said those stupid words to you in the heat of the moment and every time I want to be with you I’m reminded of them” Violet absentmindedly reached up, brushing her fingers lightly against the scar on the right side of her chin.

Prisha wanted to comment but it was clear by Violet’s tone that she wasn’t done.

“All my life, I’ve always just been living to get through one day at a time. Growing up, no one really cared about me one way or another. I never…” Violet scratched the back of her neck, “Had anyone who loved me. Not like you,” Violet looked at Prisha. “You were so trusting, kind and accepting that I thought it was too good to be true.” Violet took a deep breath. “So I pushed you away because I’m a fucking coward,” She placed her head in her hands, sniffling. Suddenly she felt a warmth on her shoulder. Uncovering her eyes, she looked at Prisha who was looking straight ahead, her hand on Violet’s shoulder.

“I was upset when I first learned the truth. All the lies you told me,” Prisha’s eyes remained on the wall in front of them. “I wondered why you would hide things from me. I figured it was to protect me, but it didn't make the pain go away.” Prisha took a deep breath. “But after this week and seeing the things I have, I understand. It still hurts that you lied. But I don’t hate you for it.” Prisha looked over at Violet who seemed shocked by her girlfriend’s words. Gently, Prisha took Violet’s hand into her own before placing her other one on top of it. 

“I’ve never opened up to someone before like I have with you. It's all new and terrifying, but I’m glad I took those risks because I found you.” Prisha felt her face heat up and saw that Violet’s was no better. “I know that we both have our issues and that this relationship has had its bumps, but it doesn’t change the way I feel about you. I still want to be with you because I love you.”

Violet placed her other hand on top of Prisha’s while she looked deeply into her eyes. “I love you too.” Slowly Violet slipped her hands out and took Prisha’s into her own. “I want to be with you no matter what,” 

Prisha’s smile grew at Violet’s words. Suddenly Prisha released Violet’s hands and moved further to the left side of her bed. She laid down. “Let’s just take a moment away from everything,” She patted the spot next to her. Violet lay down next to Prisha. The two slowly intertwined their hands while they talked. Each second felt like a blessing as time flew by. Even though their relationship had been hard, both of them still wanted to be together. They were each simply happy to be spending time together with the one they loved. 


	41. A Never-Ending Path

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Clementine gets a message in the Velvet Room that begins to plague her mind.

Clementine felt her shoulders relax as soon as her back hit the bed. Nothing ever seemed simple anymore. With each passing week it seemed like something new was happening in her life. She wondered if things would ever slow down long enough for her to just take a moment out of her day to rest. Only when she was finally done with everything for the day would she get that moment. Clementine felt her eyes begin to get droopy, hoping that tonight would be different from the other nights. That the nightmares that visited her mind would give her peace for this evening. As sleep began to overtake her she was pulled into a place she hadn’t been to in months: the Velvet Room. The courtroom still held the unearthly deep blue that seemed to overwhelm Clementine’s eyes each time she entered. Igor still sat there with the same smile plastered on his face while the gavel stood frozen in time. 

“Ah, welcome back, my dear guest,” Igor extended his hand out as his smile grew. 

“Haven’t seen you in a while,” Clementine crossed her arms while she looked up at the master of this realm. 

“Destiny works in mysterious ways,” Igor stated plainly. “I’ve seen you have gained more allies in your pursuit of justice.”

He must be talking about Ruby, Mitch and Prisha.

“Well done,” James clapped in agreement at his master’s words. Clementine glanced over at the attendee who had the smallest smile playing on his lips. “You’re quite the wildcard. To think you already have eight persona users by your side. It’s amazing,” James’ smile quickly disappeared, replaced with a confused expression when he took in the look on Clementine’s face. “You’re unhappy?”

“It’s not that,” Clementine looked away, “Just a lot to handle is all. Not sure how well I’m doing,” Clementine felt surprised by her own words, not expecting that she would share them with the attendee. She had made a promise to Igor that she wouldn’t let another person fall victim to their own construct. That she would keep everyone safe. Yet Prisha still got dragged into her sanctum sanctorum unprepared and who knew what cards fate would deal her in the future. 

“I think you’re a great wildcard, especially after witnessing your path so far,” James gave a reassuring smile. “There is always struggle on one’s path to destiny.”

Clementine raised an eyebrow, wondering exactly how much Igor and James knew about her future path. Were they really disclosing all they could?

Igor’s bloodshot eye looked deeply into Clementine’s, not breaking contact with her. “Your path is long and demanding. Many more struggles will plague it. Friend and foe will become clear with time. I look forward to seeing if you will weather the path. dear guest.” 

“Is there any information you can give me that could help me on my path?” Clementine looked between the master and attendee. 

James shook his head. “We cannot intervene. We have given as much information as we can at the moment. Just be careful, Wildcard,” 

Clementine felt her annoyance rise for a second before it fizzled out. It wasn’t worth getting angry; it never seemed to help. 

“I just want to keep my team safe.” Clementine’s words seemed to stir something inside the attendee’s heart for a moment. His eyes held confusion within them.

“If it is their fate, they will be fine.” he stated with a casual tone. 

“Fate or not, they will be,” Clementine’s eyes burned with determination. 

Igor’s laughter made her eyes shoot up towards him. “My, my what will your path hold? Such a curious thing,” His smile remained as the room disappeared around her. 

Clementine jolted up from her bed, back in her reality. Letting out a tired groan, she let her back fall against her bed.  _ Why drag me in there if you give me nothing? _

Clementine looked up at the ceiling, unsure whether another nightmare would’ve been better than the Velvet Room. She rolled out of bed and decided it was time to get ready for the day. She already knew it was going to be a busy one. Along with classes and assignments the team had decided to make today a training day at Mitch’s place since his dad would be away. Running down the stairs, she snatched up some breakfast and headed out for her day, hoping that classes wouldn’t be too demanding. 

The day passed by fairly quickly. Each class seemed to be heavily lecture-based which meant pages upon pages of rote notes. But it also gave Clementine’s mind a break to focus on other topics, especially the Velvet Room. What had Igor meant back then? Friend or foe? Weathering the path? Whatever he was talking about, it was clear that her days as a hero were far from over. As the bell rang for her last class, Clementine shuffled on her backpack and ran outside. Waiting outside, leaning against a tree was Louis.

His face immediately brightened up when he saw Clem. “Hey Clem, ready for training?” He ran forward and placed a soft kiss on her cheek.

“I suppose so, what about you? Think you’ll find your weapon today?” Clementine started to walk towards the entrance of the university with Louis. 

He gave a playful shrug while a level of uncertainty in his eyes appeared in his eyes. “I hope so, but nothing has hit me yet.” 

The two continued their chat while they made their way over to Mitch’s house. When they arrived they were surprised to see how many members of the team were already there. Brody stood by Prisha and Violet while Ruby and Aasim were sitting on the steps. Everyone was here except for the two members whose house they were at. 

Suddenly the front door swung open revealing Willy who jumped out with a superhero cape and mask. “I’m ready for training!” 

Mitch appeared behind him, also wearing a cape that was a few sizes too small for his back.

Prisha looked over with a teasing smile to which Mitch shot a look back her way. “Shut up,”

“I didn’t say anything,” Prisha retorted while Mitch and Willy made their way over to the group.

“Your eyes did.”

“I think it looks nice,” Brody walked over to stand by her boyfriend. “You two look like real heroes.

Willy struck a dramatic pose and waited for Mitch to follow. Mitch gave a half-hearted attempt which made Violet chuckle.

“Man, I wish I could have a cape,” Louis butted in with an enthusiastic smile. Clementine watched with a warm smile as her team discussed the importance of capes. A wave of fear immediately entered her heart though as she watched. Igor’s words. What did they mean? This team kept growing and growing which meant more people for Clementine to lead. She had been doing a decent job so far, but if what Igor said was true and there were still many more struggles on her path she wondered if she could protect them all. Each member of the team was dear to her which only seemed to make her worry increase with each passing day. What if she became the reason for something bad happening to the team? Clementine shook her head. She wouldn’t allow it; she had to make sure every aspect was accounted for.

“Clem,” Ruby’s voice drew back Clementine’s attention and she realized that the whole team was staring at her with eyes full of concern.

“Sorry, just lost in thought. We should get started,” Clementine moved past the others to the table displaying all their weapons. The others followed suit although it was clear that they were still worried. But it soon escaped their minds as they practiced with their weapons. Luckily all the weapons looked like props or toys so it wouldn’t appear too odd that they were fighting with them if any of the neighbors noticed them. 

Mitch moved over towards the driveway where another table stood and placed down a few cardboard cutouts for target practice.

“Here you go,” He handed two pouches of rocks to Ruby and Willy who immediately began to fill their weapons with the ammo. Aasim and Clementine moved to a more secluded area of the yard and began to spar in hopes that they could learn from each other. After every match they would compare notes and give tips to help the other lessen their weakness. 

“You’re swinging too large,” Aasim stated while demonstrating for Clementine. “I think if you position your legs and got your center right it could help with the swing.”

Clementine listened carefully to her teammate’s words, taking his advice into account as they began their next match. 

Meanwhile Brody and Violet were in the middle of discussion on the opposite side of the lawn. “Why don’t you just stick with the trident? You’re good with it,” Violet looked over towards her friend. 

“I don’t know, I wanted to try out some new weapons to see if there’s something better for me,” Brody gripped her sword tighter. 

Violet gave a shrug. “Suit yourself.”

After a few rounds it was clear that none of the weapons were meshing well with Brody. But as soon as she picked up the trident again, she seemed to get back into the groove. Mitch helped her practice, genuinely impressed whenever she got the upper hand in their spars. 

The two that seemed to have the most struggles in the training today were Louis and Prisha who both were still undecided on their weapons.

“Alright, I’m ready.” Prisha held forth a sword in front of her.

“Get ready!” Louis declared as he swung the nunchucks around his body only to hit himself in the face. 

“Louis!” Clementine ran forward to check on her boyfriend. “Are you okay?”

“What? Yeah, I was just giving myself a wake up call is all,” Louis flashed a smile before he winced, reaching up his hand to rub his forehead. That was definitely gonna leave a bruise. 

Prisha and Louis prepared for the next match, each of them grabbing a sword. Within the match it was clear that neither of their weapons were the right fit. It took nearly all of the training time, but eventually Prisha let her curiosity get the better of her and decided to go for a more unusual choice. Mitch had told her about the meteor hammer prototype that he'd made. Picking it up, she walked towards Louis, swinging the bean bag attached to the rope in a circle by her side. 

Louis let out a war cry and swung out at Prisha who easily sidestepped it.

Launching the bean bag towards Louis, she smacked his butt.

“Hey!’ Louis clutched his butt. “That’s harassment.”

“It’s a sparring match, Louis,” Prisha had a smirk on her face while she spun her weapon again only to hit herself in the face. Louis gave a small laugh before he tried to take advantage of Prisha’s mistake, only for Prisha to shoot out her weapon once more, hitting Louis square in the chest. Louis fell down dramatically, miming a death scene before collapsing. 

Prisha watched on, unimpressed. “Louis,”

“Alright, fine, just let me change my weapon.” He walked over to the table, grabbing the bo staff. The training continued from there. Each pair tried their best to gain from the experience until the time ran out. Exhausted and hungry, the team split off to do their own things. 

“So, how did it go for you?” Clementine looked over at her boyfriend as they walked hand in hand.

“Eh, still didn't find my weapon, but at least I held my own against Prisha.”

A short laugh from Prisha made Louis and Clem look back at the other couple.

“She did kick your ass, Louis,” Violet added with a smile.

“Only once or twice, but she hit her face just as many times as I did.” 

Prisha was going to deny that but quickly stopped herself. He was telling the truth. 

The two couples decided to grab some food on the way back to campus before calling it a day. 

Louis whacked the pencil against his business textbook as he looked over at the blank Word document opened on his laptop. He really wished he didn’t have the assignment; he’d much rather be working towards his music career than this. Louis leaned back in his chair. But a promise was a promise. His dad made it clear that if he didn’t follow through, things would get a lot worse. Still, he needed a break. Opening up the Discord and making his way over to Team Fun, Louis saw that a few people were still online. 

Aasim:  _ I think that if we all studied history we could gain so much knowledge and hopefully not make similar mistakes to our predecessors. _

DogMan97: _ huh _

_ Thats an interesting way to put it _

_ Guess i always felt a bit dumb when it came to history _

RubyRose:  _ you’re not dumb Marlon _

Dogman97: _ thanks  _

_ But i think ill stick to kinesiology _

Once again it seemed like a more serious conversation was happening. Louis wondered what he could add to spice it up. Nothing super interesting was popping in his mind. Or at least nothing funny. He looked over and noticed that Mitch and Prisha were still online. Suddenly a thought crossed his mind. 

Sing-us-a-song: _ @PrishaFacie _

_ What’s up with your username? _

PrishaFacie: _ I’ve been summoned _

_ What do you mean? _

Sing-us-a-song:  _ I’ve been racking my brain ever since you joined discord _

_ Thought it was a typo like Brody’s _

Bro:  _ Hey _

_ I thought you liked my username _

Sing-us-a-song: _ that you meant prishas face _

_ Bro I love your username _

_ Meant no ham _

Aasim:  _ ham? _

Sing-us-a-song:  _ *harm  _

_ Anyway _

_ Prisha _

_ Username _

_ What it mean _

PrishaFacie:  _ well, it definitely wasn’t a typo _

_ It’s a play on prima facie _

Aasim: _ I’ve heard that before… _

PrishaFacie _ : It’s a law term meaning that something is correct until proven otherwise. I thought it would be fun to do a play on my name with it. _

RubyRose: _ that’s really neat! _

Sing-us-a-song:  _ Thats really cool _

_ Never would’ve guessed it ever _

Louis looked at the time and felt panic hit him. He was taking a way longer break than he should.

Sing-us-a-song:  _ gotta go _

_ Do some business _

_ Business homework _

Before he could read the response, he tossed his phone to the side and focused all of his attention on the textbook, hoping that it would help him get the assignment done faster. 

Clementine leaned back in her seat, her eyes searching the pages in front of her. It was an impressive number of strategies that Prisha and Aaism had thought up. From the looks of it, Aasim had focused on plans that favored magic while Prisha seemed to come up with a good amount of strategies that put more emphasis on their weapons. Although not everyone was set on their weapons yet. That made some of the strategies a bit less clear. 

“I think you two did an impressive job. With this I’m sure we can increase our chances of winning while decreasing our number of injuries.” 

Prisha and Aasim looked at each other with happy smiles. 

“Based on what I’ve learned so far, it still seems that we have no way of mapping out sanctums,” Prisha looked between the other two.

“That is true, we don’t have time or the safety to take time to make maps while we fight in sanctums. With the shadows and the person’s emotions increasing rapidly within their sanctum it’s too dangerous. We-” Clementine felt her voice catch in her throat “ we can’t lose anyone else.” 

“We'll make sure no one else ends up like Amelia,” Aasim gave a reassuring smile. 

Clementine looked up and returned the smile even though it felt strained. The two seemed to pick up this fact fairly quickly.

“Forgive me if this is prying, but it seems like you have more concerns on your mind than just strategies today,” Prisha’s statement made Clementine pause before looking back at her.

“I-”

“Hey, babe!” Louis ran over and slid beside Clementine, placing a quick peck on her cheek. He looked over at the other two, his smile immediately disappearing as he saw how serious they looked. “What’s up?”

“That’s what we want to know,” Aasim said, looking over at their leader, “If she wants to share.”

“I was drawn into the Velvet Room again recently and some things that were said there were off-putting.”

“The Velvet Room?” Prisha looked around the table.

“Oh, right! We must’ve forgotten to tell you. Clem gets pulled into what we think is the other realm and talks to a creepy old dude and an attendee who are there to help guide her. Basically it seems like her ties and ours with personas are well-known to the master, Igor, and he seems to be a friendly onlooker towards Clementine’s ‘destined path’. He takes it upon himself to give Clementine advice whenever he sees fit.”

“But it’s usually cryptic and unsettling.” Clementine added with a sigh. “It seems like he was telling me that my path is far from over, but also gave some vague warning against struggles on my path. I’ve tried to shake it off, but I just can’t.”

“Was that why you were lost in thought at the beginning of training?” Louis looked over at his girlfriend.

“That’s right. Just been feeling uneasy. That’s why I called this strategy meeting today to help our chances.” Clementine took a deep breath. “Anyway, let’s get back to the meeting. 

The other three still seemed concerned but agreed. After a while they all seemed satisfied with their discussion and left to go their separate ways. 

It didn’t take long for the rest of the team to hear about how Clementine was doing and her experience with the Velvet Room. Each member of the team wanted to do something to take her mind off it for an evening, but they were drawing a blank. 

Prisha sat against a tree, hiding away from the strong sunshine. She had decided to take a short break. Opening up Discord, she moved towards the Persona Pals server. She knew that there had been something off about the PP server when it accidentally got brought up that one time by Violet, but she would have never guessed that it was a server for a team of superheroes. Going over to the #general tag, she saw that things were pretty slow even though more than half of the team was online. Louis seemed to be trying to change that though.

Sing-us-a-song: _ so i thought if i was a superhero  _

_ I’d totally want a cool mask _

_ And have the power of singing _

RubyRose:  _ don;t you already have that? _

_ Your voice is nice from what i heard _

Sing-us-a-song:  _ aww thanks Ruby but no _

_ super singing! _

_ I would have the power to affect people with my voice _

Knife2MeetU:  _ that means you could do whatever you wanted to them _

C7H5N3O6:  _ like some weird shit _

Sing-us-a-song:  _ noO! _

_ I just wanna calm them down and make _

_ Them stop _

_ Fighting with my voice _

_ Stuff like that _

_ What about you vi? _

Knife2MeetU: _ knife hands _

_ Can cut up shit  _

_ Or stab people if they piss me off _

C7H5N3O6:  _ NICE _

Knife2MeetU:  _ then I can change my hands back _

_ Cops won’t know  _

Prisha looked at the chat. Violet’s username was more on point than she’d thought.

PrishaFacie:  _ you do realize you’re dating someone who is going into law, right? _

Knife2MeetU:  _ good thing i don’t have knife hands then _

Sing-us-a-song:  _ it sounds like a villain’s power _

C7H5N3O6: _ It sounds badass _

Knife2MeetU:  _ thank _

_ What about you Mitch? _

C7H5N3O6:  _ bombs _

Sing-us-a-song:  _ oh like that bomb boss we fought a while back _

_ He was named after an animal _

_ buffalo? _

C7H5N3O6:  _ what teh fuck!?!?  _

_ You fought a bomb man _

_ And i joined after???? _

Jack-a-Dandy: _ GASP _

_ We forgot to make a team name _

PrishaFacie: _ team name? _

Sing-us-a-song: _ GASP _

_ NO _

_ WAIT _

_ Some one wuik _

_ Team name _

_ Prisha go! _

PrishaFacie: _ Well, we seem to be a team of justice fighters. So how about the tribunal. It’s similar to a court of law. _

Knife2MeetU:  _ sounds cool _

Sing-us-a-song:  _ need to write down for next meeting _

_ A good name choice _

_ That reminds me  _

_ @Bro  _

_ Why you lie to me _

C7H5N3O6: _ what’s that suppose to mean? _

Sing-us-song:  _ I was promised friendship bracelet _

_ Team friendship bracelet _

Bro:  _ Summoned? _

_ Oh right _

_ Ruby and I can make them just make a chat _

_ About the color bead each person wants and go from there _

PrishaFacie: _ What are you talking about? _

Knife2MeetU _ : team friendship bracelets that have a bead for each member with the color they want. It shows our bond _

Sing-us-a-song:  _ made a channel #emBRACEtheteam _

Prisha was definitely intrigued by the information and hopped over to the new channel where a few people had already put down their colors. Louis had immediately taken green while Violet had selected dark blue and Brody had chosen yellow. Prisha considered her options before landing on her choice: teal. A small smile formed on her lips. It was probably a silly thing to get excited about, but the idea of a team friendship bracelet made her happy.

\------

Violet felt the nervousness rise within her. She knew it was stupid to be getting nervous about going square dancing. But she was never good at dancing and the last thing she wanted to look like was a total idiot. Ruby had come up with the idea only a few days ago and everyone had immediately agreed to it. Clementine seemed to be having a rough time lately and everyone else seemed like they were in the mood for some fun as well. 

Louis and Ruby both had told the others that they should dress appropriately for square dancing, which meant cowboy hats and flannel. Violet didn’t really care about the dress code but decided to go along with it since everyone else seemed to be trying to find the right clothes. Suddenly a quiet knock appeared at her door. When Violet went to open it and she was met with Prisha’s smiling face. Her braid laid over her left shoulder, covering part of her flannel. 

“Hey,” Prisha leaned forward and placed a quick kiss on Violet’s cheek. “Ready to go?”

“Yeah,” Violet grabbed her wallet and threw it in her back pocket, making her way outside. “We’re meeting the others there, right?”

“That’s right,” Prisha paused for a moment and pulled out her phone. “I know that Aasim sent me the address.” 

Violet glanced over at her girlfriend’s phone, her eyebrow raising in confusion when she saw her scrolling through the texts. The same text, ‘behold a man’, was sent back and forth between her and Aasim again and again, each time followed with a picture of a chicken. “What’s with the chickens?” 

Prisha stopped scrolling when she heard her girlfriend’s question. A mixture of embarrassment and shyness covered her face. “Oh, it’s just a silly joke between the two of us,” She looked back down at her phone. “Oh, here’s the address.”

The couple continued to walk towards the car, their hands intertwined while they made their way towards Violet’s pickup truck. It wasn’t too long of a drive there and it was pretty obvious where the rest of their group was. Eight people stood, all wearing flannel. Some of them had even decided to go the extra mile and wear cowboy hats, some of which were flashier than others. Clementine looked over and gave a friendly wave when she noticed Prisha and Violet. “Hey guys, find the place alright?”

“Yeah it was no big deal.” Violet gave a small shrug. 

“Y’all ready to boogie?” Ruby popped out from behind Clementine, an excited twinkle dancing in her eyes.

“I’ve never been square dancing, but I’m sure it will be fun,” Prisha replied with a smile.

“I see that we have another person who really listened to the dress code,” Louis motioned, his eyes over at Violet who was wearing a cowboy hat.

“Shut up,” Violet grumbled, her eyes looking away from the others. 

“Aww, Violet, you didn’t need to wear the cowboy hat if you didn’t want to,” Ruby looked over with a sympathetic smile.

Violet’s eyes shot up. “If that’s the case...” Violet picked up her cowboy hat and tossed it over Louis’ way, “You can wear it.”

The hat flew through the air and landed on top of Louis’ own cowboy hat. Willy let out an excited gasp at Violet’s successful toss.

“If we don’t need to wear the hats, that’s fine with me,” Mitch walked forward and placed his own hat on top of the two on Louis’ head. 

“Well jokes on you! I’m just three times the cowboy now!” Louis pulled on his flannel shirt with a confident smile. 

“That’s right,” Clementine gave a small smile when she saw her boyfriend’s smile grow before turning back to the others. “Well, we should probably head in,”

“Let’s get the party started!” Louis walked over to the door and was about to open it when Prisha appeared beside him.

“Please, allow me,” Prisha placed her hand on the door, opening it.

“Oh, but I insist,” Louis looked over at his friend with a playful smile, his hands wrapping over the door handle. The two stared at each other for a few seconds before they proceeded to fight over who would have the honor of opening the door. The door swung wide, back and forth while the rest of the team looked at the scene in disbelief. 

“Well, there’s no point waiting,” Violet walked forward, slipping in through the door when it had opened wide enough. One by one different members of the group slipped in while Louis and Prisha still refused to let the other win the door fight. Soon only Brody and Mitch were left. 

Brody looked at the door, her heart racing slightly from the anxiousness of the situation. Suddenly she felt her hand surrounded by a familiar warmth. Looking down, she saw Mitch’s hand had grabbed hers.

“We just gotta time it,” 

Brody looked over at Mitch who smiled back with his usual cocky grin. He looked back at the door, watching it carefully for a few seconds as he waited for an opening.

“Now!” Mitch ran forward, pulling along Brody into the room with him. The two stumbled inside, laughing at their success. 

“Wait,” Louis paused in his struggle for victory. “Where is everyone?”

Prisha paused at his question. The two looked around before it hit them that everyone had already made it inside. 

The group had soon all gathered around in the dance hall where they were instructed to form a circle. Each of the couples stood side by side while Marlon and Willy were stuck together as partners; neither seemed to mind though. The music immediately started and everyone held hands and slowly walked around in a circle.

Everyone seemed new to this type of dancing except for Ruby and Aasim so the group thought it best to follow their lead. Ruby and Aasim suddenly pulled away from the group and slowly danced around in a circle. Clementine and Louis spun around together, giggling while they danced while Mitch and Brody seemed like they were made out of cardboard, each of them frantically trying to dance but too caught up in their heads to follow the moves. 

Ruby and Aasim moved onto the next step of the dance as they held onto each other and walked around the circle. Aasim’s arm was draped over Ruby’s shoulder, his hand locked with hers. Their two smiles seemed to grow more and more with each passing second. It seemed like they were so wrapped up in their own dance that they weren’t paying attention to the others. Suddenly the couples split off. The girls plus Willy walked to the front and touched hands before slipping back into the circle. The guys stepped forward along with Prisha and linked arms as they walked around in the inner circle. Louis made some small talk but everyone else seemed to be caught up in following the steps. 

They stopped before going the opposite way. All of a sudden, Aasim reached out his arm. Ruby appeared by his side, placing her arm on his back. The other girls ran forward and quickly placed their hand around their partner’s back as they walked around in the circle. After a few seconds the couples split again, spinning around before the girls’ hands were in the middle. Willy’s laughter started to fill the circle; his excitement became so contagious that most of the group seemed to finally relax into their dancing. The couples split off once more.

Violet tried to keep her nerves in check, but she couldn’t help it. She hoped she didn’t look like a complete idiot while she fumbled some simple steps. Her eyes moved up to look at Prisha who seemed to be having a fun time. A happy smile played on her lips as she tried to follow along to Ruby and Aasim’s instructions. Violet couldn’t help but smile along with her girlfriend. The group came together once more and danced around in a circle, moving around until Aasim and Ruby ran and began to go under the arms of Willy and Marlon who were on the opposite side of them. The other members' hands were still attached to Ruby and Aasim’s so when Ruby and Aasim ran under, the other couples were soon behind them. Brody and Mitch ducked under the pair of arms, laughing as they spun out. Next Violet and Prisha moved under, slipping through quickly so that the last pair could get through. Louis and Clem shared an excited smile while they moved under Willy and Marlon’s arms. Louis’ numerous cowboy hats immediately fell off from the endeavor. Willy and Marlon were the last to move, the circle forming once again. Marlon and Willy were laughing while the dance continued, sprinting forward when it was their turn to lead the charge under Ruby’s and Aasims arms. 

The dancing continued for quite some time before everyone agreed that they had had their share. A sea of cowboy hats that had fallen off during their dancing laid on the floor around them.

“So,” Ruby looked at the group with an excited expression, “How’d y’all like square dancing?”

“It was so much fun!” Willy exclaimed, waving his arms wildly.

“It was really fun. You make a good partner, Willy,” Marlon looked down at Willy before the two high fived. 

“Definitely gotta do it again,” Louis nodded in agreement. His arms were wrapped around Clementine’s shoulders as his head rested atop hers. 

Ruby’s face beamed at her friends’ words. Her rosy cheeks were even redder than usual from the exhaustion and exercise of dancing. 

The group continued to talk about the experience while they made their way outside. Soon they began to split off, wishing each other a good night before heading out. 

Clementine and Louis were about to head out when they heard Ruby’s voice.

“I don’t know if you two would like this, but if you want Aasim and I’d love to go swing dancing with you two sometime,” 

Louis’ eyes practically danced with excitement at those words. “I’m totally down for that! What about you, Clem?” He looked over at his girlfriend.

“That sounds like a lot of fun,” 

“Then we’ll be sure to make it happen. Well, then have a good night,” Aasim gave a final wave to the other couple before turning his attention back to Ruby. A warm smile played on his lips while his intertwined hand swayed with Ruby’s. 

Clementine and Louis shared a smile and then headed out themselves. Each of them talked about their different favorite parts of the evening and before they knew they were in front of Clementine’s house.

“I’ll see you tomorrow for anthropology,” Louis leaned forward, placing a short kiss on Clementine’s lips. 

“See you tomorrow,” Clementine got out of the car and gave one final wave as she entered her house. Quietly she went upstairs and changed into her Donald Duck pjs. A warm feeling filled her heart as she let herself fall back onto her bed. The evening had been so much fun, the dancing, the laughter, Louis. Her mind had been so overwhelmed by everything that this semester was bringing that it was nice to just take an evening off and relax. Life was good.


	42. There Will Always Be Another Foe

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Another foe slips onto campus and makes the team prepare to go forth with their personas once more.

Clementine felt a yawn escape her lips while she tried to focus on the huge whiteboard that was continuously filling with information. Her pencil scratched against her notebook, desperately trying to catch up with Professor Matthew’s evergrowing notes on anthropology. It seemed that during every class he’d get swept up in the lecture he was talking about and go on and on about the topic. He was about to start another section when he glanced down at his watch.

“Oh, shoot, it looks like that’s all the time we have for today,” The students slowly started to gather up their things when the professor’s voice appeared again. “Before you go, there is an important announcement I need to make,”

Violet groaned in annoyance as her back hit the chair once again. Louis didn’t seem much happier about staying; it was clear that all that was on his mind was lunch. 

“Someone has been going around campus and sexually assaulting students.” 

The classroom erupted in a fit of whispers at the news. Clementine shared a look with her two best friends.

“Now the sheriff and his men are on the case. but for now we wanna make sure that you all walk in at least pairs of two when you’re on campus, especially if you have a later class sometime in the evening. Be safe and make sure to report to campus security if you notice or hear anything suspicious.” 

The trio made their way out of the classroom, overhearing some of the other students gossiping about what they just heard.

“I can’t believe that there’s some weirdo perv on our campus,” a girl whispered over towards her friend.

“I heard from Becky that a girl she knew almost ran into the guy but by the time she told security he was gone.”

The trio remained quiet for some time before Louis spoke up. “You two don’t have any evening classes this semester, do you?” His voice was layered with concern. 

Clementine took his hand and gave it a small squeeze. “I don’t, but we should get the group together and figure out a buddy system.”

“That sounds good. I’ve got an evening class on Wednesdays but it should be fine if we do a buddy system.” Violet’s shrug afterwards didn’t seem to help Louis’ nerves. The three of them continued to discuss the topic while they grabbed some pizza off campus. Clementine immediately went to work planning out a day for the team to meet. It was better to be safe than sorry.

\------

A few days had passed since they heard the announcement from Professor Matthew. Louis sat with Clementine at two tables they had pushed together for the others. They were the first two to arrive. Clementine had told everyone to show up if they could so hopefully most if not all the team would be here. Louis looked up, a happy smile appearing on his face when he noticed Violet and Prisha. He gave a friendly wave to let them know where they were. 

“Hey, is it just you two so far?” Violet pulled out a chair for her girlfriend before she sat down.

“Yeah, but Aasim said he wouldn’t be too long and Ruby and Brody said they needed to do one small errand before showing up,” Clementine leaned forward and grabbed her Pepsi, taking a large sip from it.

“It’s unnerving to think that someone like that is on campus,” Prisha stated. “I think it would best if we got some pepper-”

“Sorry I’m late,” Aasim’s shaky voice appeared by the table. His brow was covered with sweat and his hands were on his knees. Had he run across campus to get here?

“It’s fine, we were just starting to talk about the situation,” Clementine informed Aasim as he took a seat.

“I for one think it would be wise to start a buddy system,” Aasim pulled out a sheet of paper. “Does anyone at this table have any evening classes or know of the others’ schedules? I know that I only have an evening class on Thursdays.”

“I have one on Wednesdays and I think Brody might have one on Tuesdays,” Violet leaned forward, her elbows lazily placed on the table.

“I also have an evening class on Tuesdays,” Prisha added. “We don’t need to worry about Mitch or Willy since they don’t go here.”

“And Clem and I don’t have evening classes this semester.” Louis leaned back in his chair, looking skyward “Man, do you ever think that maybe this campus is cursed?”

“What makes you say that?” Prisha raised an eyebrow at Louis’ statement.

“Well, think about it: we’ve had serial killers, a plagiarist, a bomber, not to mention all the sanctums and now a pervert.” Louis listed them on his fingers one by one.

“Well, a plagiarist doesn't really stand with the others,” Prisha argued. She didn’t seem to be backed up by the others though.

“Believe me, this plagiarist was different,” Aasim grumbled under his breath.

“Why bring it up now though, Lou?” Clementine looked over at her boyfriend. Louis snatched up his backpack and after rummaging through its contents for a minute he pulled out a newspaper. More specifically  _ The Ericson Gold, _ the university newspaper. There on the front page of it was an article about this very topic. The title read: _ Ericson’s Hidden Secrets.  _

“This one guy, what's his name...” Louis picked up the newspaper he had placed down, looking at the cover article. Omar! That’s his name. Omar keeps bringing up all the weird shit that has been going down throughout the first semester. And now that some much is happening he keeps bringing up the question of whether the university is more involved than we think.”

“Sounds like a conspiracy theory,” Aasim took the article and read it thoroughly. “He doesn’t seem to have much to go on.”

“But even if the university isn’t involved, dontcha think that it’s crazy how much stuff has happened so far?” Louis argued?

“A lot has happened on campus,” Clementine placed a hand on her chin.

“Maybe that’s why we were called on as heroes to help stop it.” Louis jumped in.

“Or maybe that’s why bad stuff keeps on happening,” 

Everyone looked surprised at Violet’s statement. Clementine was about to comment on it when she saw something she never thought she’d ever see. 

There, storming over in a huff, was Mitch. His eyes were red and puffy and his cheeks were tear-stained. He sat down without a word, causing the chair to thud against his weight.

“Dude, are you crying?” Louis looked over with concern.

“Shut up,” Mitch grumbled, turning his face away so that the others couldn't see the tears. 

“Sorry it took us so long!” Brody called out to them as she ran over alongside Ruby towards the table. Her smile immediately fell when she saw Mitch’s face.

“Oh no! Did you pepper spray your face again?” Brody’s concern was lost amongst the giggles and snorts of Louis and Violet.

“You pepper sprayed your face?” Aasim looked over with confusion.

“You’ve done it before?” Prisha looked over with a smirk.

“It’s not as easy to use as you think!” Mitch snapped back at them. “Stop fucking laughing!”

“How can you even use it wrong?” Violet asked, leaning back in her chair.

Louis let out a little gasp. “Did you aim it the wrong way?” 

Mitch remained silent but the fact that he turned away was an answer all on its own.

Louis and Violet started to laugh again.

“Guys, come on, stop it,” Brody sat down beside her boyfriend, grabbing his hand and giving him an apologetic look. “He was just trying to help me.”

“Pepper spray isn’t a bad idea,” Clementine added, hoping to move the conversation into a more productive and positive direction. “I’ve got some in my bag. What about you guys?”

“I have some in my bag as well,” Prisha pulled out her spray.

“Me and Brody have got our own too.” 

Violet remained silent for a second. “I’ll buy some.” Prisha’s demeanor seemed to relax a bit more at her girlfriend’s statement. 

“I still don’t know how you aimed it the wrong way though,” Aasim’s words made Mitch glare daggers over at him.

“You think it’s so fucking easy, then you try,” Mitch snatched one of the sprays and tossed it over to Aasim. 

“Fine,” Aasim stood up, took a few paces away from the tables and faced the spray away from him. “You make sure that the nozzle is away from your face and not pointed at you, then you press down on it like this,” Aasim pressed down on the pepper spray, sending out a peppery mist. But right as he had sent out the spray a strong wind picked up and blew right in his direction, causing the spray to hit him square in the face. Aasim let out a cry once it connected, his hands reaching up to his face. 

“Aasim!” Ruby ran over and pulled his hands down. “Don’t rub your eyes! You’ll only make it worse.” Ruby’s hands were in Aasim’s; she rubbed small circles around them to help. Mitch began to laugh only to be stopped when Brody whacked his shoulder.

“Mitch,” Brody gave a disapproving look to Mitch which seemed to shut him up. “This is really bad timing, especially since we were going to surprise everyone,”

Clementine looked over at Brody with a confused expression. “What do you mean?”

“We finished the bracelets,” Ruby glanced over at the group. 

Brody unzipped her bag and pulled out multiple friendship bracelets. Each of them were made from strong brown rope with nine beads. The first bead was a beautiful rich purple, followed by a deep green then a striking dark blue. After that was a bright cheery yellow, then a bold red, a light brown bead that stood alongside a black bead and finally a teal bead that ended the bracelet. Everyone’s eyes instantly lit up with excitement and happiness at the friendship bracelets. Louis and Clementine helped each other put on their bracelets while Prisha helped Violet. Even though Brody told him he didn’t need to, Mitch pushed aside his tears and helped her put on the bracelet. Soon everyone’s bracelets were on and Willy’s one was tucked away in Mitch’s pocket for safekeeping until he could give it to him. 

“I really should get Aasim to the nurse’s office,” Ruby stated before giving a friendly wave and heading out, guiding Aasim down the walkway. 

“I should be going too. Mitch’s eyes still seem to be irritating him.”

“It’s fine,” Mitch grumbled, but it didn’t seem to stop Brody as she walked alongside him into the cafeteria in hopes of finding some milk to cool down the burns. That left Prisha, Violet, Clementine and Louis alone at the table with Aasim’s list. Clementine moved forward and grabbed the list, looking over it. It seemed that pretty much everyone’s schedules were on here. 

“Well, I’ll make up a pairing list for people and send out a text,” She placed away the paper into her bag. 

“Sounds good,” Violet rose up to which the rest soon followed. The four made their way down a walkway towards Building E, talking about the prospect of getting ice cream later on after their classes. Louis’ arm swung excitedly back and forth, the friendship bracelet jumping up and down his arm. Clementine couldn’t help but smile at her boyfriend. She looked back at Violet and Prisha who seemed just as happy about the bracelets even if they weren’t as expressive as Louis. 

\-----

Brody felt the cool water run through her fingers out of the faucet. Slowly she lifted up the water and splashed her face, hoping that some cool water might do the trick to help her calm down. She knew she didn’t have to be nervous now that the buddy system was in place and she trusted her teammates unconditionally, but still... Her anxiety wouldn’t let her heart rest. Pulling a few paper towels from the dispenser, she wiped her face and hands.  _ It’s okay. Brody.  _ She looked in the mirror for a second before turning sharply on her heel and tossing the used paper towels in the trash can. 

“Sorry, I didn’t make you wait too long, did I?” Brody popped her head out of the bathroom door and ran forward to meet up with the other three. 

“No, it’s fine,” Mitch went forward and intertwined his fingers with hers. 

“Don’t worry about it,” Prisha shifted her backpack while Aasim led the way. The four of them walked down the hallway together before entering the outside of Building R. It was silent between them for a few minutes. Prisha glanced over at Aasim who seemed to be diligently looking around to make sure no one suspicious entered their vicinity.

Then she looked over Mitch and Brody who also seemed to carefully study their surroundings while they made their way to their first stop: Prisha’s apartment. A small smile lay on Prisha’s lips. She was glad she had friends that she could count on that were so willing to give up their time to make sure each of their friends was safe. 

“So, how was class?” Mitch started up some small talk in hopes of distracting Brody.

“Good, I think that this may be the best psychology class I’ve taken yet,” Brody’s excited smile seemed to make Mitch’s smile grow as his girlfriend spoke. “What about you, Prisha?”

“Oh, it was just one of the classes that I’m required to take. So it was a very long, very boring three hour lecture about rocks.”

“You’re taking Geology?” Aasim glanced over at Prisha.

“Do you have to lick rocks?” Mitch looked over with a smirk. “I heard my friend took a geology class and he had to smell all sorts of rock and even lick them.”

Prisha let out a tired groan. “I hope I won’t have to do that. I really should’ve chosen a different science for my requirement.”

“Licking rocks sounds like fun tho-” Mitch’s sentence was cut off when they heard a scream causing all of them to freeze. A shiver ran down Brody’s spine; she could hear voices arguing.

“No! Please! Stop! Someone!” The girl’s voice cracked with fear.

Without a second thought, Mitch spritned forward towards the noise, his face twisted in anger. 

“Mitch! Wait!” Brody called out after her boyfriend then proceeded to chase after him. Prisha and Aasim were right behind her. Aasim cursed frantically under his breath while he dialed the number for campus security. It didn’t take long for the other three to find Mitch who, unaware of its existence, was running towards a rift.

“Hello, Ericson University Campus Security,” a tired voice came out of the phone.

“Yes, hello, I’d like to report strange screaming by Building E. I-” Aasim stopped when he saw the rift burst open. It swallowed the four of them into its embrace. His stomach twisted and turned while the sound of the dial tone filled his ear. 

“Damn it,” Aasim shoved his phone back into his pocket. Phones were utterly useless in sanctums. “Mitch, what were you thinking?”

Mitch looked back at Aasim with an annoyed expression. “I was trying to do the right thing.”

“Both of you, stop. We need to focus on helping the person and getting out here,” Prisha stepped in between the two of them. The two both took a step back, giving the team a moment to look around the sanctum. 

All around them were rolling clouds on a clear blue sky while below their feet was a giant story book. Colorful illustrations and gorgeous handwriting filled the pages that spanned far beyond their feet. On the far left the page read:  _ Once Upon a Time there lived a girl named Madison Roberts _ . Before they could continue reading the contents of the book, a voice came from within the pages. 

“H-hello? Is anyone there?” The girl’s voice was small and weak, “Please, someone. Help me.”

The four tried to locate the source of the sound when the truth suddenly hit them. Her voice was coming from behind the many many pages of the book. She was trapped at the end of the story. Mitch and Aasim tried to lift up the pages but they wouldn’t budge. Prisha and Brody got on their knees to see if there was some other way to get to her.

The girl started to panic even more, her cries becoming more frantic. 

“Madison, we need you to calm down,” Prisha stated. “My name is Prisha and we’re going to help you, alright?”

The voice remained quiet for a while before a weak voice replied, “Alright.”

The four moved to the center of the storybook and were in the midst of coming up with a plan when the page suddenly flipped over, heading right towards them. Each of them braced for impact but the page moved through them, causing them no harm. They looked around with confusion when a tearing sound emitted from the page across them. A prince dressed in the finest clothes of gold and silvers looked upon them with a dazzling smile. Taking off his hat, he bowed before them, his smile suddenly changing to a wicked one. Lifting up his head, he spit out a disturbingly red gunk. Brody lifted her hands over her face but nothing hit them. The gunk had flung back onto the prince’s body, transforming him into a shadow. Its silhouette changed to a tall man with a mustache and beard. 

Mitch’s hand dug around in his pocket while he ran forward towards the shadow. Pulling out a pocket knife, he lunged towards the shadow, causing it to backstep. Mitch took advantage of the precious second and tore off his glove and with a hard hit to his heart called upon his persona. “Atlas!”

The silver being stood behind him, holding up the massive orbs. In one fluid motion Atlas moved in front of the shadow and crushed it without hesitation. But as soon as Mitch had defeated one shadow, three more appeared to take its place. All of them showed up as different versions of a fairytale prince before morphing into ghastly shadows all resembling the same person. One lunged at Brody once it noticed that she was summoning her persona. 

Mitch ran forward, slicing through its hand with his pocket knife. “Hey, asshole, pay attention to me!” He pushed back the shadow and ran forward.

“Sita!” Prisha instructed her persona who followed without doubt, casting a light magic attack that caused cracks to form all over one of the shadow’s bodies before it exploded into dust. Aasim made quick work of the last of the shadow on the page, raining down a whirlwind of fire onto its face and burning it beyond recognition. 

The pages turned once again and a new figure separated itself from the page, a person looking like a classic chosen hero. A bow was slung on his back as he strolled forward. His eyes oozed the goo, changing him into the same disturbing silhouette. Without any warning he aimed the bow at Brody with an arrow notched in it. Ophelia created an ice barrier just in time to stop the incoming attack only for the shadow to change its target at the last second onto Prisha. With only seconds to react, Prisha sidestepped in hopes of dodging the arrow. The arrow whizzed past her face, cutting deeply into her cheek. 

Prisha winced in pain. “Kouha!” The light attack broke the bow with ease, giving Mitch the perfect opening to slice down the enemy.

“Prisha! Are you okay?” Brody ran over to her side.

“I’m fine,” Prisha stood up, the blood trailing down her face. 

“Here,” Brody placed a weird container in Prisha’s hand that contained a green sludge. “Use this on the cut.”

Prisha didn’t have a moment to lose as more shadows appeared in front of them. Brody sent a volley of icicles that pierced through two shadows’ hearts. Prisha opened the container and was hit with a rotten, earthy smell. Pushing past the stench, she placed two fingers into the mixture and spread it across her face. The wound on it instantly closed up even though the smell lingered. 

The team worked hard to defend each other while taking out opponent after opponent. They were flying through the pages, only gaining a few scrapes and bruises along the way that Brody and the green sludge were easily able to heal. Soon they were on the final page. There standing in their way was a strange, twisted form composed of a prince, a knight and a bowsman. Each third of the man’s form fought with the other two for dominance before it changed into the creepy figure once again.

Mitch ran forward, pushing back the enemy and drawing its focus to him. Brody focused primarily on giving her boyfriend strong defense while Prisha and Aasim decided to put one of their strategies in motion. Both of them split off in two opposite directions while Mitch held the middle until they were in position.

“Move!” Prisha instructed.

Mitch jumped back just in time as Aasim and Prisha led a joint attack. Prisha focused mainly on the limbs, making it near impossible for the shadow to attack, while Aasim continuously sent wave after scalding wave at the shadow. 

Brody slowly lifted up her hand and with an unyielding determination and drive sent out the final attack. The droplets around Ophelia froze, forming a giant spike of ice. She flung it forth and it connected with the shadow, embedding into its heart and making the monster give a terrifying laugh at its own death. 

The four gathered around each other, all of them exhausted from the battle when the final page turned over, revealing a girl with bright blue hair who looked to be in her early twenties. Her shirt and skirt were torn and covered in dirt. Brody was the first to move forward. She slowly kneeled down beside the girl.

“Hey there, I’m Brody. I’m glad you’re safe.”

The girl looked at her with a terrified expression that soon changed to one of gratitude. She tried to speak but no words escaped her lips. After a few seconds she was changed into a ball of light and disappeared. The sanctum melted around the four. For a moment they were relieved only for a sense of fear to overtake them when they noticed campus security running forward in their direction.

Prisha guided the other three a little ways down before pulling them into the shadows. They were far too exhausted and suspicious-looking with the blood on their clothes to not be seen as suspects. The four waited with shallow breathing before campus security left with Madison safely in tow. The four walked out in the open, each of them looking at each other gratefully. They were able to get to Madison in time, but they all knew that she was far from the last of this man’s victims.


	43. A Perverted Moral Code

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The team finds the malum of the assaulter and assembles to take him down.

Clementine leaned back in her seat, closing her eyes for a moment before Prisha and Aasim showed up. When she heard what happened two nights ago, she couldn’t believe it. Why did Mitch run ahead of the others and not try to call upon them for help? Luckily all of them made it okay, but it didn’t help ease the worry in Clementine’s heart for her team. Every sanctum, every shadow was a challenge and shouldn’t be taken lightly. 

“Hey, Clem,” Clementine was pulled away from her thoughts when she heard Aasim’s voice. He gave a friendly wave while he made his way over with Prisha who seemed a bit on edge. 

“Hey,” Clementine replied as her friends sat down across from her. “I’m just going to cut right to the chase. Tell me everything that happened that night,”

Prisha and Aasim shared a look before Prisha cleared her throat.

“First I’d like to apologize again for rushing in,”

“It’s fine. I don't doubt you or the others’ skills, it's just...” Clementine took a deep breath, “We need to be careful is all. I already told Mitch off for his behavior, although I’m not sure how much got through to him.” Clementine scratched the back of her head with a long sigh. “We can’t keep rushing half prepared into sanctums because one day it will cost any one of us more than just some new clothes.”

Aasim and Prisha nodded in agreement, both of their faces holding a level of guilt to them.

“We were just trying to make sure everyone was getting home safe, then we heard this scream.” Aasim shifted in his chair. “Next thing you know MItch is already halfway there. I tried to call the campus security but the sanctum had already opened up. What was odd about this sanctum, however, was that the shadows seemed to have a distinct silhouette.”

Clementine raised an eyebrow at Aasim’s statement. “How so?”

“They all carried the same face. It was a man with a beard and moustache; he gave off an unnerving vibe,” Prisha leaned forward on her elbows. 

Clementine’s eyes widened at that news. Her hands quickly scavenged through her bag to get out a piece of paper and placed it in front of the two. “Draw anything you remember,”

Prisha and Aasim looked a bit confused by the request but followed the instructions. When they were finished, Clementine stared at the portrait, her hand placed under her chin. Her face scrunched in concentration when it hit her. Only one other time could she remember seeing a silhouette again and again in sanctums. It was when the Saint Johns Killers were on the loose.

“No matter what, no one goes into the next sanctum without me,” Clementine stared at them with a serious expression.

“Why?” Prisha asked with concern.

“Is it something to do with you being the wild card?” Aasim added in, still seeming as lost as Prisha. 

“Back when it was just Louis, Violet and myself, we saw the silhouette of the Saint Johns Killers amongst the shadows and whenever we finished a sanctum information would enter my mind,” Clementine leaned back with her arms crossed, “So I’m thinking if I’m there we may be able to figure out who's behind these assaults quicker.”

“I’ll be sure to let the others know in Discord,” Aasim pulled out his phone, tapping away at the screen. 

Prisha looked over at her friend, still trying to remember all the information that she needed to retain as a persona user. “Do you really think we could catch the perpetrator with that?”

“I do,” 

The look in Clementine’s eyes made any doubt in Prisha’s mind dissipate. “Alright,” 

The three continued to talk for some time after about some different things that could be helpful for the team before going their separate ways. With the message on Discord in place and a rundown of everything with Aasim and Prisha, Clementine found her stress lessened a bit. They were going to catch this guy.

“So, Valentine's Day is coming up... do you have any special plans with Prisha?” Louis flashed a playful smile over at Violet who turned her face away from him.

“That’s none of your business,” she mumbled, walking faster down the walkway. 

Louis ran forward to join her again. “Come on, Vi,” Louis nudged her arm but she brushed him off.

“I’ll think of something, alright? So just back off,” Violet’s face was dusted with a light blush.

“Alright, alright, just thought you’d like to shop with me when it gets closer to the date for chocolate and flowers and stuff,” 

Violet wanted to comment on Louis’ suggestion but stopped when she heard something. At least she thought she heard something. Violet stopped in her tracks, trying to see if she could hear that sound again. 

“Violet?”

“Shut up!” Violet hissed, causing Louis to immediately clam up when he noticed the look in her eyes. Violet stood completely still, her ears trying to pick up on any sound around her. Violet’s eyes widened when she heard the faint sound again.  _ There it is! _   
It sounded like screaming. Without any warning, Violet sprinted off in the direction she thought the noise was coming from. 

“Violet! What are you doing?” Louis sprinted alongside her throughout campus until they came up near Building N. Suddenly a nauseous almost nostalgic feeling twisted in their guts. They had been persona users long enough to know what this meant. A rift had appeared. 

“We should call the others!” Louis called out to Violet who didn’t bother to turn around.

“We don’t have time,” Violet dashed forward, her feet pounding against the floor and cracking open the rift. Immediately the duo were sucked into another sanctum. Louis and Violet tried to see what this sanctum would hold in store for them, but it was impossible to see anything in this place except a faint light where a torch flickered. Underneath the torch was a girl looking around the age of twenty. She was bound and tied to a pole with brown, thick rope. Her tear-covered face had blobs of makeup clumping together. Her shirt was torn off her shoulder. 

Louis and Violet rushed forward to the girl. Their senses were suddenly hit with a moist, earthy smell similar to that of some forest or jungle. 

“Hey there, my name is Louis and this is my friend Violet,” Louis gave a comforting smile. “We’re going to help you out, alright?”

“Thank you, oh thank you,” the girl whimpered. It was clear that she had been through a lot already. 

“What’s your name?” Violet spoke up, drawing the girl’s attention to her. 

“Scarlett Anderson,” the girl croaked. Her voice sounded dry and tired.

“We’re gonna get you out of that rope, Scarlett,” Violet motioned to Louis who was closer to Scarlett to try and undo the knots. 

Louis began right away, but it became abundantly clear that he wouldn’t be able to free her. The two looked at each other, sharing the same thought. What if Scarlett was like all the other sanctum owners, trapped until they defeated all the shadows? Violet’s eyes scanned the pitch black surrounding them. Where the hell were the shadows? She continued to look around until her eyes locked onto a pair of bright yellow ones that were focused on Louis. She felt her heart drop when the shadow jaguar lunged towards Louis who was still trying to figure out a way to break the binds on Scarlett. 

“Louis!” Violet hissed out in warning before tackling the predator. She tumbled across the ground, her hands struggling to keep the jaguar at bay. She froze for a second when she saw that the face of the shadow jaguar was replaced by that of a man with facial hair. He gave a creepy smile before his claws scratched down at Violet who dodge the first set. The shadow lunged forward, its mouth aiming for Violet’s throat. Violet held off the attack, her fingers sliced and bleeding against the sharp teeth. There was no way she could summon La Guillotine right now. 

“Persona!” Louis' voice cracked while he smacked his hand against his heart. Liszt appeared behind him and slammed its gloves against the piano keys, sending down a devastating attack on the shadow. It let out a pained cry before turning into a pile of smoldering ashes on Violet’s clothes. Violet gave a throaty cough as dust flew out of her mouth. Louis ran over, skidding to a halt by his best friend and extending his hand. Accepting it, Violet then wrapped her fingers around her glove and ripped it off. 

“Persona!” Violet spat when her eyes noticed another predator looming in the darkness. The shadow cheetah dashed out and made its way over towards Louis whose eyes widened in shock when he saw the face.

“What the shit!”

Before he had time to process it, La Guillotine had already moved in front of him, slicing the being clean in half. Louis gave Violet an appreciative smile which instantly turned to worry when he saw the state of her hands. Rummaging through his pockets, he pulled out a small Ziploc that held some crushed medicinal herbs. “Here, use this, it’s all I got,” 

Violet caught the package and opened it, making a grimace when the smell hit her. “This smells like shit,” Violet grumbled, rubbing it on the deep cuts on her hands. There was only enough for one more injury. They needed to be careful. Louis looked around the darkness. There had to be some way to see how many shadows were left. 

“That’s it!” Louis exclaimed, pointing his finger towards the darkness. “Mazio!” Countless bolts of thunder rained from the heavens, piercing the ground and lighting up the darkness that consumed them. Seven pairs of eyes shone from this move. 

Suddenly a lion and panther ran forward, each of them weaving and dashing across the ground and making their way towards Violet.

Violet jumped back and motioned to La Guillotine to attack. Her persona was successfully able to take out one, but the other one was still very much alive. A bolt of thunder made that fact moot, however. Louis took a shaky breath before giving a thumbs up. A small smile played on Violet’s lips as the pair continued their work. 

One by one the predators were getting taken care of. Violet and Louis continued to defend and support each other at every twist and turn until they were met with the last shadow. A liger walked out, smashing its paws against the ground, commanding fear from its prey. The face twisted with a pleasant smile when it looked upon Scarlett. Before Violet could react the liger had lunged forward, its mouth wide and sharp, hovering over its helpless victim. Suddenly Louis appeared in front of Scarlett, the liger’s teeth sinking into his side. Louis let out a painful cry, hissing as Lizst sent a brutal wave of thunder that zapped the liger until it fell over dead and lifeless. An assortment of snacks fell from Louis’ now torn coat. The chips and candy crashed onto the floor only to get covered by his blood. 

“Louis, shit!” Violet ran over and kneeled beside him. Taking out the medicinal herbs, she spread the mixture onto his wound which thankfully fully healed as she applied the final smear.

“Oh,” Louis made a face. “You’re right, Vi, that does smell like shit,”

Violet rolled her eyes, a small chuckle escaping her lips. “You’re gonna smell like shit too.”

“We gotta convince Ruby and Brody to make it smell better,” Louis plugged his nose before rising up. The pair looked over at Scarlett who was now free from her bonds.

“You alright?” Louis went over to place a gentle hand on her shoulder. Scarlett gave a small nod before turning into a ball of light. The sanctum slowly began to melt around them.

“Why did you have snacks?” Violet looked over at Louis.

“In case we ever ran into Gabu again, but man am I glad he wasn’t in that one,” Louis gave Violet a quick smile that immediately disappeared when he saw who was behind her. Clementine and Prisha looked pissed. Clementine must’ve seen the rift on the map.

“Clem! Prisha!” Louis’ words made Violet spin around to see the two of them. Both Louis and Violet had guilty expressions as they looked at their girlfriends. 

“Come on,” Clementine grabbed onto Louis’ hand and without another word she led the other three away from the spot. Violet and Louis stood in awkward silence while Prisha called campus safety so they could find Scarlett. When she was done, she rejoined the group by Clementine’s side.

“Why did you jump into that sanctum?” Clementine’s tone was serious. “Without me or anyone else?”

“Well, you see, I - umm…” Louis was trying to come up with something but was drawing a blank.

“I ran forward and opened the rift,” Violet mumbled, causing Prisha’s eyes to widen before Violet spoke again. “We couldn’t wait in case-”

“But you didn’t have time to bring your weapons, or any medicine. You could’ve gotten hurt!” Prisha argued, pausing when she noticed the blood staining Violet’s sleeves. Her eyes danced with worry. “You could’ve died.”

Violet looked away. She didn’t have a response for that. Prisha wasn’t wrong.

“You do realize that we’re a team, right?” Clementine looked at her two best friends with an expression neither of them liked to see: fear. She took a deep breath before continuing. “I know that every sanctum has the risk that we could lose the person stuck inside it, but if we keep letting any member of the team do this then we won’t make it. Our team could slip away piece by piece.” Clementine’s eyes focused on the torn part of Louis’ coat that was coated in a layer of blood. Violet and Louis’ faces fell at their leader’s statement. They had both been so caught up with everything they really didn’t stop to think how this could affect the others.

“I… shit,” Violet cleared her throat. “I’m sorry. It was a shitty thing to do even if I thought… I won’t do it again.” Her eyes looked up, locking with Prisha. “I promise.”

A small, relieved smile appeared on Prisha’s lips at Violet’s words. Slowly Prisha walked forward and wrapped her arms around Violet. She placed a gentle kiss on Violet’s forehead, causing her girlfriend to get overwhelmed and bury her face against Prisha. Violet’s heart dropped when she felt Prisha shake slightly in her arms.  _ Never again, _ Violet looked up at Prisha. _ I never want to make her feel like this again. _

“I’m really sorry too,” Louis took a step forward, scratching the back of his head. “It wasn’t right. We’ll definitely be more careful in the future.” Louis gave an apologetic look when suddenly Clementine leapt forward and tackled him with a hug. Louis returned the gesture, immediately swaying back and forth on his feet as Clementine’s arms wrapped around him tighter. Suddenly Clementine’s face scrunched up in disgust. 

“Oh, what is that smell?”

Louis was about to comment when his stomach growled, causing an awkward silence before Louis gave a nervous chuckle. 

“Why don’t we grab something to eat?” Prisha suggested. “We can talk more about this over food.”

“That sounds good,” Clementine nodded in agreement. The four began to walk down together, each of them happy that things had worked out okay.

Clementine sat down at her desk, staring at the homework in front of her. She had to get this done before her schedule got filled up again. Her eyes wandered across the desk, landing on the potion and medical spread that she kept at her side at all times. She really couldn’t believe how bad that stuff smelled, but it would be rude to be pushy and demand that Ruby figure out how to make it smell better, right? Clementine looked back at her textbook. Maybe it would be okay to take a short break and check Discord and the map just in case. Pulling up Discord, she noticed that something was happening in the Team Fun #basic channel.

Sing-us-a-song:  _ so the real question we should be asking is _

_ Who would win hunger games if they were volunteered _

Bro: _ not me _

_ Im dead _

DogMan97:  _ yeah I would panic too much _

_ Wouldn’t last long _

_ I think Violet or Mitch could tho _

Bro:  _ yeah that makes sense _

Sing-us-a-song:  _ I think Clem would be good too _

_ Not at murder at but survival _

RubyRose: _ hi y’all _

Bro:  _ hi _

DogMan97:  _ hey ruby _

Sing-us-a-song:  _ hey Ruby _

_ Join in  _

_ Who would win? _

RubyRose: _ well I think maybe if I hide I’d last a while but not win it _

_ Aasim might do well _

Sing-us-a-song:  _ I just realized something! _

_ It’s mind blowing _

_ Prisha has a braid _

DogMan97: _ yeah but what's that got to do with anything Lou? _

Sing-us-a-song:  _ Katniss has a braid _

_ Prisha would win the hunger games _

Bro:  _ So that ups her chance of survival? _

_ actually i think she could win _

OrangeuGlad:  _ she is really capable _

Louis:  _ Clem! _

Bro:  _ hey clem _

Rubyrose:  _ how’s it going? _ _   
_ Dogman97:  _ hey _

OrangeuGlad:  _ I’m good  _

_ About hunger games I think Mitch may be too hot headed to win _

Bro:  _ that’s fair _

_ And true _

Clementine opened up her map and immediately felt her heart drop to her feet. There in the far northwest corner of campus was a large, bright red dot. A malum had been opened. Sending a quick message to the #assemble chat, she swept up her healing items and her bastard sword. It was time to catch the assaulter. 

It only took a few minutes for everyone but Willy to show up. They’d all agreed to never take him to a malum unless it was absolutely necessary. Louis immediately handed out the weapons. 

“Everyone got their potions and medical spread?” Ruby asked, double checking her own pouch. 

A chorus of ‘yeses’ rang out when each of the members had double checked. 

“Alright, guys,” Clementine paused, looking at Mitch. “You’re going to fight with a shovel again?”

Mitch shrugged. “It’s what I grabbed. I’ll still kick ass,”

Clementine wasn’t sure but there wasn’t any time to go back and grab a weapon. 

“What the hell is that?” Violet’s voice drew everyone’s attention to Louis who was holding what looked to be an old table chair with nails protruding from it.

“Oh, this?’ Louis swung it over his shoulder with a casual smile. “This is Chairles. Made him myself,”

Everyone remained quiet, unsure how to respond to it. 

“Looks like it will hurt,” Clementine stated with a small smile. “So, everyone ready?”

They all nodded. 

“Prisha, Ruby and Mitch, this will be your first malum so be careful,” With that Clementine took a step forward, causing the rift to burst open, swallowing the team whole. The familiar swirling in their stomachs appeared when they were thrown inside. Clementine looked back to make sure her team was alright before looking around. 

The walls were covered with pictures upon pictures of girls in magazines. The floor was covered with torn clothes while unappealing music with girls whispering in the background blasted in the room. As soon as Clementine took a step forward, her stomach was bombarded with a twisting, sickening feeling of lust. It felt so overwhelming that it made her freeze for a second. In that moment a page of the wall started struggling to break free until it was successful. It crumpled up, pulsing and writhing around until it formed a large hand. Immediately Violet and Mitch ran forward, each of them grabbing their gloves and throwing them off. 

“Pesona!” the pair yelled, their personas appearing behind them in an instant. Mitch ran forward, ready to face the first shadow when it rushed past him and directly focused on Violet. 

Violet sidestepped the first grab and with the help of La Guillotine and a swift swipe of her meat cleaver she destroyed it.

Suddenly all four walls started to shake violently as more and more magazine pages fell. Five shadow hands stood in the room. Each of them lunged forward, seeming to pay no mind to Aasim, Louis or Mitch and instead focusing on the others. 

Brody jabbed her trident out, ending a shadow in a single moment while Prisha used her meteor hammer to fend off a shadow until Ruby’s Psi magic obliterated it. 

“Louis, Mitch, the shadows only attack girls!” Aasim grunted, taking out a shadow hand. Mitch and Louis seemed to understand immediately what Aasim was suggesting. Louis slid forward in front of Clementine and Ruby while Aasim moved in front of Brody and Prisha., leaving Mitch with Violet who was busy braining a shadow. The team moved through the room slowly, taking out all the shadows. The guys forced the shadows to have all their attention on them while the girls used their personas to take them out from a safe distance. 

Soon they were through the first room and began to make their way down a narrow hallway. The walls were plastered with dozens upon dozens of pinup girl pictures. Louis stumbled forward when his feet caught on one of the bras strewn across the floor. 

A giggling sound emitted from the wall causing the team to freeze. A pinup girl fell forward out of the picture and landed hard on the floor. She slowly rose up and with a few disturbing sounds cracked her body into place. She looked over at Louis with a flirtatious smile, her hips casually swaying back and forth. The team was on guard but was not ready when only a few seconds after coming to life the shadow appeared right in front of Louis. With a playful, whispered sound she reached out, trying to capture Louis in an embrace. 

Ruby’s hand wrapped around Louis’ collar and yanked him back just in time to not get caught in the shadow’s grasp. The shadow girl had wrapped the air in a hug instead. Suddenly huge, deadly spikes jetted out of her body on all sides. With a teasing sigh, she turned her attention to Aasim only to get headshot by Ruby’s sling. 

“These ones are only interested in the guys,” Clementine took a step forward, placing a protective hand in front of Louis. “Switch roles.”

Prisha shook her head as she sent a light attack against one of the pinup shadows, causing it to burst into a pile of dust. “These traps are disgustingly heteronormative,”

Clementine slid back on her feet when a shadow hand appeared, Louis sending a volley of thunder on top of it. “Prisha, now is not the time,” Clementine jumped forward when Ruby’s shot hit one of the pinup shadows and sliced it clean down the center.

“Right, sorry,” Prisha’s meteor hammer took out another shadow that had almost got to Aasim. Brody punctured one of the shadows before looking ahead. They were almost out of this room. The team continued to switch formation whenever a specific shadow drew near them. It was a slow and tiring process, but after a while they had made it to the door. 

Clementine stood in the front and cautiously opened the door, peeking inside to see the assaulter. The team made their way in, making their presence known to their enemy. 

He was a somewhat tall, skinny man with facial hair. An annoyed look spread across his face when he turned to face them. “Oh, come on! What kind of shit is this? How the fuck did you get here?” The man glared down at the team.

“We kicked your stupid shadows’ asses that’s how!” Mitch snapped back, his grip tightening around his shovel. 

“We’re here to stop you,” Ruby added. “What you’re doing is wrong.”

The man laughed, devolving into a fit before standing up straight. “I’ve done nothing wrong, girlie. I’m just doing what’s fair.”

“Fair?” Aasim glared at the man, a layer of disgust in his voice.

“Girls always act like they’re too good for me,” The man walked forward, causing the team to get more defensive. “When I’m the best thing they could ever hope to get!” His face took on a twisted smile. “ So I’m only getting what I’m owed.”

“Those girls didn’t owe you shit!” Violet hissed up at the man who seemed to be getting more pissed off by the second. 

He made his way closer towards the group. “All of you are the same! Too stuck up to realize how great I am!” The man shook with rage. “So I’m going to keep taking and taking until I say when it’s done!”

“You’re a piece of filth!” Prisha spat.

The man leaned back and let out a disturbing laugh. “We’ll see what you say after I’m done!” The man’s body burst out some sort of black mist. 

“Get back!” Clementine instructed, throwing out her hand towards her team who immediately followed her order. It took a few seconds for the mist to clear, revealing the man seated in a fancy red chair, his legs causally crossed while he stared at them with a twisted look of passion and hate. He was dressed in an expensive black tux, the name  _ Troy _ embedded over the right breast pocket. On his arms were chains that ran all the way down to his elbows. 

Violet and Mitch ran forward together before splitting off to opposite sides. 

“Persona!” Louis slammed his hand against his heart. Liszt appeared and immediately attacked Troy with a bolt of thunder, but Troy simply spun the chain of his right side and knocked the attack away. 

“What the fuck?” Mitch jumped forward, swinging his shovel down to land a hit but Troy’s chain was too fast, connecting against Mitch and sending him flying back. 

“Mitch!” Brody looked concerned, turning her head to look back. “Ophelia!” She instructed her persona to send several spears of ice over towards Troy, but once again the attack was blocked. The ice attacks didn't stop though. Brody wasn’t giving up that easily.

Suddenly the chain on Troy’s left hand shot out, wrapping around Violet’s waist. Violet let out a pained hiss as it tightened, her feet dragging across the floor while she tried to stop herself from getting pulled close to Troy. 

“You’ll thank me,” he whispered in a sickening tone. 

Prisha’s eyes hardened. Tearing off her glove, she hit it against her heart. Sita appeared within seconds. “Sita!” Prisha hissed, throwing her arm forward. 

Suddenly Troy’s eyes were being consumed by cracks before a ray of light burst out of them. Troy cried out in pain, releasing the chain around Violet, but Prisha’s attacks didn’t stop. Again and again his eyes were destroyed by light magic while he cupped his face. Pulling away his hands, he looked towards her with bloody eyes.

“You bitch! I’ll make you regret that!” Both chains shot out towards Prisha, aiming to seize her neck. Prisha was about to sidestep when Aasim slid forward, extending his left arm in front of him, causing the two chains to wrap around his arm. The chains tightened and tore his flesh as they constricted around his arm.

“He’s vulnerable, attack now!” Aasim yelled before biting off his glove and placing it against his heart. 

Waves upon waves of fire, wind, ice and other magic bombarded Troy who kicked and screamed. Moving his arms, he tossed Aasim across the room who landed hard on his back with a shaky gasp. Without giving the team a moment for their minds to catch, Troy shot out one of his chains, catching Ruby in its grasp. “You’re mine!” His face was covered in a sleazy smile. But he soon regretted his action when Yggdrasil attacked him with a powerful Psi attack. The psychedelic purples and blues covered his legs before taking them out. 

Mitch and Violet shared a look, coming up with a plan in an instant. Both of them forced Troy to put his attention on both of them, giving the others an opening to attack while Ruby and Brody focused on healing the injuries that the team had sustained. 

It seemed like they were nearing victory when all of a sudden a powerful force seemed to press against their bodies. Everyone tried to fight back, but soon they were on their knees. 

“Kneel before me!” Troy laughed as he used one of his chains to grab Louis and smashed him against the floor.

“Louis!” Clementine struggled to get up. It seemed almost as if gravity was against her. Soon the chains knocked Aasim and Mitch to the sidelines before constricting around Brody who squirmed, trying to reach break free. Ruby struggled to reach her friend.

“Let go of her!” Mitch ran forward, instructing Atlas to attack Troy’s weak point, but it was no use. The attack never reached him; Mitch had been hit hard again by his chain. Suddenly the other chain moved out and wrapped around Clementine’s legs, dragging her towards him. Violet and Prisha struggled against the gravity spell in hopes of freeing their friends only for it to cause their faces to be slammed to the ground by another round of the spell. 

Clementine tried to think of a way to defeat him now that he had revealed his greatest attack. Her fingers were clawing against the floor when it hit her. She knew how to defeat him. Clementine locked eyes with Brody. Within seconds the two had come up with a plan. As they dangled in front of Troy who had a disturbing look on his face they put their plan into action. Brody spit on Troy’s face, causing him to be thrown off for a second.

“Garu!” Clementine instructed Ma'at who sent a volley of wind towards the chair, destroying it and causing it to tip over. 

“Bufu!” Brody winced as the chain tightened around her waist. The water droplets froze around Ophelia and then rushed forward, hitting Troy square in the face. He still seemed to be moving though. Using all of her might, Clementine swung her bastard sword, hitting it against the icicle that was embedded in Troy’s skull and making him crumble, releasing them. Troy returned to his former appearance before reaching out a hand towards Clementine, passing out and disappearing. 

Everyone gathered around each other while Brody and Ruby healed any remaining wounds. Before they could celebrate though, the ceiling began to crumble.

“What the fuck?” Mitch sidestepped a piece of falling debris. Ruby and Prisha looked just as concerned by the event. 

“We don’t have time, we need to move!” Clementine sprinted forward, leading her team through the rooms. Violet and Mitch used their personas to destroy some debris that was landing too close to the others as they approached the exit. 

Extending out her hand, Clementine went through the opening, the rest of her team close behind her. Everyone was breathing heavily; it was another close call for their escape. Clementine looked around at her team. Brody was over with Mitch, checking to make sure he was okay while he held her hands and assured her he was. Aasim was busy showering Ruby with praise about how amazing she was and Violet had run forward, wrapping Prisha in a hug. She had clearly been worried about Prisha dealing with her first malum. 

Suddenly Clementine felt Louis’ arms wrap around her shoulders, his head gently falling on her right shoulder. “That was intense, but I’m glad you’re safe,” 

Clementine looked over at him, placing a quick peck on his nose. “I’m glad too.” Clementine looked at her boyfriend with a loving gaze before turning her attention back to her team. This malum had been a challenge, but nothing that was out of the ordinary for a malum. What was mentioned in the Velvet Room, what Igor had said… this wasn’t it. Something worse was going to happen. Clementine felt her stomach turn. She only wished she knew what it was going to be. 


End file.
